By David Fleet
947-244-2647
dfleet@mihomepaper.com
Detroit — From March 14-16, Goodrich High School students competed in various aspects of marketing at the District 1 DECA, State Career Development Conference at the Huntington Place, Detroit.
A total of 19 GHS students competed.
DECA or the Distributive Education Club of America, energize students for college and career readiness with a focus on business growth and development skills.
Goodrich High School has had students qualify to compete at the DECA State Development Conference each year since its charter. DECA students include 225,000 members in all 50 states and nine foreign countries.
In December, Goodrich students qualified for the state competition District 1 DECA Conference at Saginaw Valley State University.
The DECA State Level competition includes a 100 question comprehensive test
DECA is more than a competition series, added Katie Benard, Goodrich High School teacher GHS DECA coordinator.
“It is a leadership development program for our future business leaders,” said Benard.
“It is a really fun competition, and a cool experience to see my students grow so much from their experiences in such a short period of time. As a former State level competitor, I was personally lucky enough to earn a small scholarship from my participation and efforts. I still am in contact with my former adviser from high school. We have judged the state conference together for years.”
GHS student Aubrey Broome- Judged Role Play Medal and State Finalist in Retail Merchandising
Students in this category compete in marketing and management functions of a retail environment.  This year’s competition focused on promotion and operations.
GHS students Sanora Kochan, Parker Jerome, Lilly May- State Champions in Leadership and Teamwork.
Students in this event develop leadership abilities and demonstrate conducting a business meeting while deciding the best solutions to a problem.  This team event highlights the importance of cooperation and decision making.  The team must work together, collaborate, and value the problem/solution process.