By Rebecca Noeske

Central students rocked the Distributive Educational Clubs of America (DECA) State conference this past weekend, from March 15 through March 17. Of the six students who competed, seniors Lekha Bapu and Jessica Hazelton both received role play medals. Bapu also was awarded a top ten medal. Unfortunately none of Central’s students qualified for the national competition, despite their incredible performances.

Other students who attended included seniors Sydney Bright and Connor Lund, and juniors Vishwa Lalani and Zach Kopy. They all made the trek to Grand Rapids to compete against over 3,000 other students.

“It was daunting to be competing against so many other students,” said Bapu. “We did remarkably well though.”

To qualify to compete at the State conference, all the students involved in DECA competed at the regional conference at West Bloomfield High School on January 12.

“I didn’t place high enough at the regional conference to move on to the states,” said freshman Jessica Rockwell. “But it was my first year and I’m still proud of my accomplishments.”

At the conferences, students engage in business-related exams, case situations, role plays, research projects, and several other challenges. They are then awarded based on their performance in comparison to that of other students.

“DECA is a lot of fun,” said Rockwell. “I’m looking forward to doing it again next year.”