Downingtown, Pa. - Fifteen students from the Center for Arts & Technology (CAT) Brandywine and Pickering Campuses recently earned the right to compete in state competitions thanks to their outstanding performances at the regional level.
Ten business academy students from the CAT Brandywine Campus will advance to the DECA state conference this spring. The students qualified for the state competition by their exemplary performance at the District 9 Competition held in King of Prussia. CAT students competed in 18 business-related events against 500 high school students from Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery Counties.
As a result of their winning performance, they will now compete at the DECA state conference, February 22-24 in Hershey, PA. The winners of that competition will advance to the national competition this April. DECA is a student organization whose mission is to enhance the education of students interested in marketing, management and entrepreneurship.
Competing for CAT Brandywine will be Ralph Showalter of Octorara, Apparel and Accessories Marketing; Alaina Dunn and Heather Cilinski, both from Oxford, Entrepreneurship Promotion Project; Jon DeHaven of West Chester and Alea VanDurme of Downingtown, School-Based Enterprise Event; Eric Pajrowski of Oxford, Technical Sales Presentation; Percy VanDunk of Coatesville, Job Interview; Briteny Kreisel of Avon Grove, Modeling; and Ashley Bulfaro of Oxford, Public Speaking.
In addition, Candace Hearn of Coatesville will attend as a voting delegate. Also, Briteny Kreisel was elected to the DECA state officer team for the 2006-07 school year.
Pamela Przychodzien, business academy instructor serves as the DECA advisor.
Not to be outdone by their peers at Brandywine, five students in the CAT Pickering Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) chapter also will be competing in state competition due to their winning ways at the FBLA regionals in Wilmington, De., in which they competed against several hundred students from throughout southeastern Pennsylvania and Delaware. They will now advance to the FBLA Pennsylvania State competition in Hershey, April 19-21, 2006.
Competing for CAT Pickering will be Chris Cone of Downingtown, Computer Applications; Andrew Christman of Phoenixville, Computer Applications; Adam Ollinger of Phoenixville, Word Processing, Nikki Budzilowicz of Downingtown, Word Processing; and Sean Buckwalter of Phoenixville, Visual Basic Programming. Jane Hesson, business academy instructor serves as the FBLA advisor.
According to Hesson, participating in FBLA strengthens student learning in the classroom.
“FBLA reinforces what students are learning in the classroom because the competitions cover the curriculum that we study in class, such as Visual Basic programming, Advanced Microsoft Office, communication skills, impromptu speaking, desktop publishing, mathematics and technology concepts,” said Hesson. “FBLA also helps students to become organized, disciplined and to learn that practice can be rewarding.”
Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) is a nonprofit educational association of students preparing for careers in business and business-related fields.
The Center for Arts & Technology is a public high school that specializes in providing high school students with both the work force and academic skills they will need to be successful in school, work and life.
The Center for Arts & Technology provides career education programs in 25 occupations, including: allied health science, animal science and technology, automotive service technology, automotive collision technology, business, carpentry, cabinetmaking, cosmetology, computer information systems and networking, commercial graphic arts, computer equipment repair, culinary arts, early childhood care and education, electronics, electrical occupations, engine technology, health occupations, horticulture and landscape gardening, heating/ventilation/air conditioning and refrigeration technologies, masonry, printing and graphic arts, security and police sciences, teaching, telecommunications, and welding and metal arts.
