On March 5th, River Dell’s DECA club made its mark in Atlantic City. Over 50 River Dell students competed in DECA’s state competition, a platform where schools from across the state showcased their business acumen in various activities. This was a significant achievement for the club, demonstrating their commitment and talent.
This was the second trip DECA has gone on this year, following the first district competition that happens annually in January. At each of these competitions, students can do many activities in multiple fields of work. Sophomore Edward Dumitru explains that entrepreneurship team decision-making is an event “where you get a prompt or problem and have to decide what is best for your imaginary business, then you have to present to the judge who is an imaginary investor to convince them to invest.” This is just one example of the many events students could choose from.
At states, students participated in similar activities during the state-level three-day competition. They participated in their events and different ceremonies related to the club. These students participated in hospitality, marketing, finance, and entrepreneurship events.
But this isn’t the end for River Dell’s DECA.
Two exceptional River Dell students, Irene Cho and Nana Fukushima, earned a spot at the prestigious ICDC by winning their competition. Irene and Nana took on the challenge of the International business plan, an event they had yet to experience. Irene shared that their task was to “write a business proposal on a made-up or existing business to move it from one nation to another.”
Their journey was not without its hurdles. They had to write a 20-page paper that detailed the sale of Japanese piezoelectric floor boards to South Korea. These floorboards take the mechanical energy from foot traffic and then covert that energy into electricity. Cho explained that the technology exists today; however, it is not as effective of an energy source as she hopes it might become one day. Irene’s and Nana’s hard work paid off, earning them 6th place and a spot at nationals.
ICDC, the International Career Development Conference, allows business students to explore different fields and activities at the conferences and ceremonies that are held. Students can benefit in ways such as building leadership capabilities and skills.
