Old Rochester is proud to welcome DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America) to its plethora of extracurricular activities. DECA is a program dedicated to preparing young students for the real world. Specifically, it focuses on a wide variety of business subjects, from management to accounting to tourism. There is something for everyone to do in DECA, and there is something for everyone to get out of DECA. There are over 250,000 members nationwide, and a striking 50 students at Old Rochester. The Club was founded at Old Rochester Regional High School in 2019 by Eddie Gonet IV and Ryu Huynh-Aoyama. They shared a vision of educating students about business and real-life necessities. Old Rochester lacks business classes, so many students are left in the dark about taxes, credit, and other life essentials.
On January 9, the club went to their first competition in Hyannis. All of the students were surprised by how well the chapter performed. For not having any business classes, they are sending 21 students to compete at the next level of states. They were hoping to send a handful of students, nevermind half of the chapter! Some of their top performers actually placed top 3 in their competitions. Some of the top performers include: Brendan Burke, 1st Place in the Sports and Entertainment Marketing Series; Edward Gonet IV, 1st Place Principles of Business Management and Administration; Gwen Miedma, 2nd Place Principles of Hospitality and Tourism; Aiden Harrington, 2nd Place in the Sports Entertainment Marketing Series; Sean Lund, 2nd Place Hospitality Services Team Decision Making; Samuel Harris, 2nd Place Hospitality Services Team Decision Making; Amaya McLeod, 3rd Place Hospitality Services Team Decision Making; Emily DellaCioppa, 3rd Place Hospitality Services Team Decision Making; Ryu Hyuhn-Aoyama, 3rd Place Entrepreneurship; Theodore Carroll, 3rd Place Hotel and Lodging Management Series.
Next, they will be competing at the state level in Boston. They will be competing alongside roughly 3,000 other students who qualified to go there from around Massachusetts. They would also like to thank Tremblay’s Bus Company for superior transportation services! Best of luck to ORR DECA in all of their business endeavors!
Photos courtesy of ORR