POB DECA Members Earn Top Honors at International Conference

Plainview-Old Bethpage’s DECA members earned the organization’s highest honors at the DECA International Career Development Conference in Orlando, Florida this year. The students were event finalists in the Business Services Operations Research and Hospitality and Tourism Operations Research categories.

These students competed against approximately 200 teams in their respective events and were among the top 15 in each. Students Blake Becker, Jesse Singer and Emily Sorgie competed in the Business Services Operations research event, while Matthew Bricker, Logan Saltzman and Brandon Witz competed in the Hospitality and Tourism Operations research event.

During the school year, roughly 100,000 of DECA’s 224,000 high school student members take part in the organization’s competitive events program allowing them to compete for local, regional and association titles. The competitions are designed to simulate real-life business scenarios and test a student’s academic understanding as well as their skills development.

The top association winners put their talents to the test during the program’s final round of competition in Orlando, where over 22,000 students from across the world vied for international honors. Over $200,000 in scholarships and awards were presented to students and teachers for their achievements.

“I truly had the time of my life competing at ICDC 2023,” Matthew said. “I was humbled to represent the Plainview-Old Bethpage DECA Chapter at the highest level, and I felt tremendous pride every time I wore the DECA blazer. I will always cherish the memories I made at this year’s conference, and I am beyond grateful I had this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I strongly encourage all students who are interested in business to join DECA, learn important skills to help them in their future and strive for DECA glass!”

“ICDC was an experience of a lifetime,” Jesse said. “Being an international finalist was a major accomplishment and great honor; however, the experience I got from the competition, convention and other career development programs was invaluable. The business leaders and college representatives who were at the conference taught me lessons that will be useful to me throughout by business education and ultimately my career.”

Plainview-Old Bethpage DECA is one of the largest and highest achieving chapters in New York State. Each year, the chapter offers numerous initiatives to allow students to explore different facets of business, leadership and their future.

For more information about the Plainview-Old Bethpage Central School District, please visit the District’s website at www.pobschools.org. Exciting activities happening throughout the District and programs celebrating student achievement can also be found on the District’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pobschools/.