Though he just joined Business Professionals of America (BPA) just last fall, Tyler Barry beat out hundreds of the country’s ‘best and brightest? at BPA’s national leadership conference in Anaheim, Calif.
Barry, son of Mark and Lisa Barry of Clarkston, earned first place in an objective test on management, marketing and human resources concepts during his stay on the west coast, May 4-9.
The top score made him the first national champion for Lake Orion High School, where he is a senior.
‘It’s the best and brightest from across the country so it’s great for him to have done so well,? said Jennifer Ohlbright, Lake Orion High School’s BPA advisor and one of Tyler Barry’s teachers. ‘I’m extremely proud. There were 5,600 students in Anaheim, and to be a winner in any event is extremely impressive.?
Barry says business and finance is something he began looking into a little over a year ago.
‘Before I ever joined (BPA), I researched business a lot because that’s what I want to do,? he said, noting that information he needed for the test ‘was all prior knowledge.?
The senior says he plans on studying financial management after high school at Northwood University in Midland, though he notes, ‘I’m not sure if I want to do corporate management or personal finance, like financial planning.?
Barry’s national title will earn him either $2,500 or $5,000 a year in scholarship money from the university.
This is the second time in 11 years of BPA participation that Lake Orion High School students have gone to nationals, making Barry one of four Dragons to participate.