Saturday, December 14, 2024
The Granbury High School DECA Club is experiencing tremendous growth and success, as student leaders are stepping up to make a difference.
During the Granbury Independent School District board of trustees meeting Nov. 18, DECA advisor Kylee Peterson introduced this year’s club officers and gave an update on the club's most recent accomplishments.
DECA — which stands for Distributive Education Clubs of America — is an international business organization that prepares emerging student leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality and management.
While DECA was a prominent work co-op and business education program at GHS in the 1970s, the program was discontinued 20 years later in the 1990s.
Peterson, a business/marketing teacher in the Career and Technical Education department at GISD, was later asked to revitalize the program in 2021.
“Our goal at GHS is to provide students opportunities to sharpen their business skills against like-minded youth,” Peterson said in a previous interview with the Hood County News. “Business is not learned in the classroom — it's learned in the business community.”
Starting an organization from scratch may seem like an impossible task, but Peterson quickly made it happen.
When the program officially launched in 2021, 16 students chose to become members of the club and seven competed in the district competition.
“Three years ago, I got seven kids to trust me,” Peterson said at the board meeting. “Of the seven that went to district, six went to state, and one went to international our first year.”
In 2022, the group grew to about 48 members, with 28 competing at district and seven qualifying for state in the finance series, retail marketing, finance professional selling and the sales project team.
The club also has “The Anchor Store,” which is staffed by 28 seniors who have completed three years in the business pathway.
The store, which features snacks and food items as well as spirit merchandise, also recently earned the accomplishment of becoming a gold-level school-based enterprise with the DECA national program.
“We do compete every year at the international level with our school store,” Peterson said. “Last year, we took 38, I think, to district, and we took 16 to state, so what we're doing in the business pathway at Granbury High School obviously works. Our kids can compete, not only at the district, but the state and the international level. We are making our footprint all across the country, from Orlando to Anaheim to Atlanta.”
With the DECA Club continuing to show remarkable success and growth each year, Peterson shared that she decided to “step back” and let her students lead the chapter from now on.
"This year, I kind of stood back and said, ‘You know what? It needs to be student led. We've kind of built a program. I'm going to kind of step off and let them lead the chapter,’” she said. “This year, as of right now, we're at 115 student members. We've hit the century member chapter mark.”
She explained that the club has also completed community service projects, including a donation where approximately 1,500 cans of food were given to Mission Granbury.
With an ethical leadership campaign and a panel interview with First National Bank employees, students are also able to gain real world experience and learn how to network in order to better prepare for their future.
“There’s a lot of things that they’re doing this year,” Peterson said. “I know some of you attended The Cove — that was a brand-new homecoming tradition that we introduced that was completely student led.”
The Cove is where all Pirate alumni and students participated in a tailgate-style celebration to join in fellowship and share purple and gold memories at homecoming Oct. 25.
"I'm pretty proud this year to say that we are student led, and I've got some really great things that are going to happen,” Peterson said.
She also invited DECA President Reece Hunt to speak to the board about the experience that he’s gained just by being involved in the club.
Hunt explained that when he first joined DECA, he didn’t fully realize how much it would shape his future.
"(It) provided a platform for us to grow in ways that extend far beyond the classroom. These DECA experiences not only help students succeed in business, but also in life,” Hunt said.
He shared that through competitions, he has learned how to develop essential skills like public speaking, tackling complex business problems and learning how to work as a team.
“Through DECA, we learn valuable skills like leadership, communication, problem solving and critical thinking,” he said. “These very qualities are what businesses and colleges look for in applicants. It's about learning to navigate challenges, think strategically, lead with confidence — all of which are vital to succeed in any field.”
For Hunt, DECA has played a“crucial role in his college application process, as the leadership opportunities, competitive experiences and business skills that he developed through the club made his application stand out.
He shared that it’s because of his involvement in DECA that he was able to obtain presidential merit scholarships to three business schools: Abilene Christian University, Dallas Baptist University and Flagler College’s School of Business.
"The skills I gained from DECA gave me an edge in my college applications,” Hunt said. “They allowed me to showcase more than just my grades and test scores. Thanks to DECA, I could demonstrate I was ready for the next of my academic journey equipped with all the practical business skills and real-world experience from DECA. But DECA is not just about individual success. It's about what we can accomplish together as a team.”
As president, Hunt noted that one of his main goals for this year is to increase participation and expand the impact of DECA at GHS. He shared that he is currently working to send at least 20 students to the state level competition in March.
"I want more students to experience the personal growth and opportunities that DECA has to offer, whether through competition, or by developing the confidence skills needed for future success in general,” he said.
He added that his focus this year is on ensuring that DECA Club “continues to thrive” at GHS by building a solid foundation for new members.
"The growth of our chapter is only the beginning,” he said. “By continuing to recruit new members, provide leadership training and support students through the competition process, we can assure that DECA remains an essential part of our school's culture. My goal is to set DECA up for continued success, ensuring that it becomes an ever growing and evolving program for students year after year.”
Looking ahead, Hunt noted that DECA has been transformative, as it has provided him with opportunities and shaped his leadership abilities so that he can succeed in the real world.
"I'm excited for what the future holds for me,” he shared. “I'm confident we can continue to grow our club and provide more opportunities for students just like me, and not only that, but build a legacy of students for excellence in DECA for the years to come."
“I can guarantee you that the future that’s coming for them is greater than I can imagine,” Peterson said. “The kids who have gone on and graduated that were a part of DECA are getting internships, and they're getting into colleges like Mays Business School at (Texas) A&M. I promise that if they will put in the time, it's going to pay off."
She added that with the club expanding recently, they have had to change districts — meaning that the DECA Club will be competing in Irving for the district competition Jan. 15.
“In March, we've got state in Dallas, and then end of April, we will be back in Orlando. We are getting seats at the academy as it's like a business conference within and then our goal this year, we want another team,” Peterson said. “We're ready to go back and compete — that's been our goal — so move out of our way. We're coming.”
GHS’ DECA Club officers include: Everett Brown, Alejandra Landa, Emily Ashcraft, Catherine Morel, Alison Galindo, Axel Davila, Linda Cortez, Sierra Morisette, Mary Deemer, Warner Phillips, Linda Cortez, and Hunt.
