Wrapping up the school year is always an exciting time as we see the culmination of a year’s worth of work. This week, we celebrate with the Jenison DECA team as they traveled to the International Career Development Conference in Florida. Not only did they represent our community well with their hard work and ingenuity, one group finished in the top 3 – the first in a decade for Jenison.

Emma Scott, Alyssa Sumption and Mackenzie Sanders, Jenison DECA Team, School Based Enterprise – Retail (Cat’s Corner), came home with 3rd place in the International competition!

The Jenison High School Business program has partnered with DECA  for 30 years to further classroom instruction and enhance students’ preparation for college and business careers.

Mrs. Jordan Whittecar and Mr. Joel Hunt are JHS business educators and DECA advisors. Together, they led 140 students participating in DECA challenges and projects this year. Over half of those students advanced to the State Competition, and this week, the World finalists traveled for the chance to finish out their year with a final competition. 

Alyssa Sumption topped off her senior year and 3rd DECA experience by finishing in 3rd place with her team at the International competition. What a finish! She competed in School Based Enterprise for Retail Operations. She’s so excited to share this honor with Emma Scott and Kenzie Sanders. The paper was submitted for certification in January for the Cats Corner (school store in the High School), and they presented the Market Planning section in competition.

Alyssa and her team preparing for the world competition in Florida this week.

“The biggest skill I acquired from DECA was real world marketing skills. After DECA I can make any print ad, create any promotional campaign, come up with a marketing communications plan or even properly run an organization social media account. After being in DECA, it’s safe to say I’m ready for whatever gets thrown my way in my future career in marketing.” Alyssa is looking forward to the future with great memories of the whole process. She is grateful for the priceless experience that is DECA.  

However, it wasn’t all work and no play. The students look back fondly on the memories of bonding with their classmates on this trip with trips to Disney and hanging out at the hotel pool!

Jason Hoffman enjoyed his first year in DECA as a senior this year working on a Virtual Business Challenge with a focus in Accounting. Competing with a presentation outlining preloaded accounting data which is given in a computer simulation window. Jason’s challenge was to find fraud and errors. These could include mis-charging customers, not paying taxes, or not reporting bank withdrawals. “DECA has prepared me with a lot of financial knowledge and rhetoric that will significantly help me communicate with others and find jobs. I learned about personal finance, networking, and accounting skills.”

Jason Hoffman (right) competing at ICDC

He is proud that he was the first Jenison student to qualify for Internationals with a virtual business presentation. Jason’s only regret is that he didn’t participate in DECA sooner as he feels he could have learned so much and it would have really enhanced his high school experience. After school, he hopes to go to Michigan Tech for computer science and math.

I’m so grateful for programs, and the investment of our teachers to develop our students on all levels. Giving them the opportunities to expand their minds, grow their talents and discover new passions. Congratulations to all the DECA participants and finalists. We are all very proud of you!

Jenison students receiving recognition at the international level include:

Teams putting the finishing touches on their presentations before the final judging.

Mr. Joel Hunt and Mrs. Jordan Whittecar escorted the Jenison DECA Finalists to the World Competition in Florida, April 25 – May 1, 2019

Zachary Girschle and Parker Luce, Jenison Entrpreneurship Team with Mrs. Jordan Whittecar

Travis Longstreet and Clarence Molenje, Jenison Finance Team

Owen Maurice and Mady Tease, Jenison Integrated Marketing Team

Joel Hunt, Mackenzie Sanders, Alyssa Sumption, Emma Scott, Jordan Whittecar