After competing at the district level, DECA is heading off to state competition. Members who participated at districts get to go to the next level to compete against students from other schools.
To get to where they are, DECA has organized practices several hours before big competitions—“Lots of practice,” senior Kate Bock said. “That’s one of the things I’m proudest about in Marshall.”
Along with helping inexperienced students, veteran coaches also have to practice a lot on their own and attend meetings. “DECA prepares by pairing students up with mentors [and] requiring students to create a state leadership conference binder,” marketing teacher and DECA sponsor Angie Rogers said, adding that “they will prepare individually as well.”
Students in DECA don’t necessarily have to compete in order to gain from the club. “The feeling you get from placing in your category is indescribable,” Bock said. “[It] means so much more after the work you put in.”
States will be held Feb. 27.