The DECA competition, International Career Development Conference, is where marketing students from around the world meet in Atlanta, Georgia in order to compete in order to win worldwide recognition as the top school in the DECA competition.
“The [DECA] competition has multiple different categories but essentially students are given a workplace readiness example, and they have 10 minutes or so to go over some sort of prompt with some kind of discrepancy and their job is to solve it to the best of their abilities while remaining creative. [The judges] will score them based on their fluidity and their ideas,” said DECA teacher Patrick Lucas.
Recently, junior and Sports & Entertainment Marketing student Kareese Akinloba got top 10 overall in the competition, top 10 in both role plays and was named an ICDC finalist. This is a very special accomplishment considering 750 people participated in the competition.
“It was so exciting because it was something I’ve never done before, so it was a great experience to be there and see all of the different countries and all the different schools competing,” said Akinloba.
Despite her success, the fierceness of the competition and the people competing, could be felt in the room. Kids from around the world showed up to flex their marketing prowess to see who was the best problem solver and the quickest thinker.
“There were students from India, Canada, Columbia, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Honduras, China, and many more,” said junior and finalist Thomas Ballou.
The intensity of the competition, although fun, can lead to nerves in the participants. Uncertainty can reign supreme, but having fun is the main objective.
“DECA and competing can be really scary, but once you’re in it, it’s the best thing ever, I feel like it’s something everyone can do, there’s something for everyone,” said Akinbola.
Winning DECA is a really special accomplishment; it takes a lot of pre-planning and preparedness that takes a lot of time to get ready for, which makes Akinloba’s accomplishment that much better.
“Honestly it’s really inspiring to have students like that, those that really give it their all. What they did was really inspiring to me and it makes me want to become a better teacher and person in general,” said Lucas.
While the whole competition is a serious event, having fun, learning, and meeting new people is the main objective.
“This whole experience made me think that I could actually do this and it is something that I actually enjoy,” said Akinloba.