Congratulations to our D228 schools for their outstanding work in the DECA State Competition! Bremen, Hillcrest and Oak Forest each competed in various competitions in business, hospitality, retailing, marketing, and much more.
Bremen High School’s State DECA competitors consisted of 50 members, which is a record high for the school. We would like to recognize Dominque Mejia and Destiny Villagomez for finishing 3rd place in Business Solutions. Special shoutout to Elina Aguilar, Isabella Estrada, and Yoseline De La Rosa for their second place finish in Business Solutions. Congratulations to our State Champions, Andrea Orozco, Michelle Ramos, and Elizabeth Rosales in the Sales Project. The Bremen Chapter of DECA was awarded for being a Superstar Chapter and being a Gold Level IConnect Winner at the State Competition. Bremen was the only chapter in the state of Illinois to receive the highest level of the Membership Campaign.
Bremen also received an award for community service, ethical and promotional involvement in the community, earning them a Chapter Campaign award. Bremen was awarded 4 spots at the highest level, "Thrive" leadership academy at the International Career Development Conference (ICDC) and will have Leslie Oliva, Giselle Ramirez, Antonio Duran and Nayeli Lozano representing Bremen at the Thrive Level Leadership Academy.
“It was an unbelievable weekend with a lot of tears, laughter, and celebration from our students,” said Todd Strein, Bremen’s DECA advisor. “ We have 13 international qualifiers that were rewarded with medals, trophies, and the opportunity to represent Bremen at the International Competition in Anaheim, California in late April.”
Oak Forest had 43 students qualify for the state competition. The school earned a philanthropy award, Gold recertification for their operation of the Bengal Bean, Gold recertification for their operation of the Busy B’s T-shirt shop, and the highest award for community service, ethical and promotional involvement in the community. Based on their involvement throughout the school year, each member was invited to participate in the National Competition.
“It was nice to see Oak Forest students rewarded for the things that they naturally do out of kindness, and this is an opportunity for others to see the difference that they make, and positive impact they make on their community,” Mrs. Gomez said. “I always tell my students to do something today that they will be thankful for, and they have decorative resumes and real world experiences for any future endeavors. I am so proud of every single one of our chapter members.”
Ashley Haston earned a five year service award as an advisor. DECA advisor Katie Gomez received a 10 year service award, and the Outstanding Advisor Award.
Hillcrest qualified for Nationals by achieving the Thrive Level of the Chapter Campaigns, and three out of eight in the state came from District 228. All 20 DECA members from Hillcrest qualified for the state competition, but only seven were able to attend.
The fantastic seven were Jesstasia Washington, Johnel Brown, Patrick Otis, Eric Pike, Edward Young, Azariah Love, and Kahajiona McNeil-Spencer. Edward Young, Eric Pike, and Johnel Brown won a certificate for gaining competence in their Role Plays and exams. Jesstasia Washington and Patrick Otis competed in the Sales Project event, where they presented on the Hungry Hawk after school cart. Jessica and Patrick were among the top 10 attendees at the Sales Project event.
Johnel Brown and alKahajiona McNeil-Spencer also competed in the Sales project event. Their project focused on the school’s new poster maker. They presented how the poster maker has made a tremendous difference in the quality of posters that we can now provide. Johnel Brown and Kahajiona McNeil-Spencer have also networked with small businesses to gain sales from the poster maker by providing banners and posters. Johnel Brown and Kahajiona McNeil-Spencer also placed in the top 10 of the Sales Project Event.
DECA Hillcrest also won the philanthropy category with two events, Nob Hill Toy Drive and South Suburban Pads “Feeding the Homeless” and “DECA Operation Warm Blanket.”
“I would like to recognize my students' hard work, dedication to competition, and strong work ethic throughout DECA’s competition season (regional and state),” said Kinya Jett, DECA sponsor. “ The DECA regional competition was a wonderful experience for my 20 Hillcrest students, and I am so proud of them.”