Local DECA Club Members Place at State

The West Ashley High School DECA Club competed at the DECA State Career Conference at the North Charleston Coliseum Feb. 26-28. Twelve members placed in the top ten and three members placed in the top three.
DECA is designed to prepare emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management. The WAHS DECA Club is advised by Marketing teacher, Terry Stutts, and is run by a team of five student members.
High school DECA members from all over South Carolina were invited to compete in the DECA State Career Conference with members from each team competing in various categories. DECA’s evaluation process involves students in both a written component such as an exam or report and an interactive component where an industry professional serves as a judge.
During the interactive component, members are presented with a real-world problem and given 10 minutes to come up with a solution which they in turn present to the judge. The objective is to be one of the top three finishers in order to qualify for the next level of competition.
Senior Ashante Edwards placed first in the Apparel and Accessories Marketing category. The following students were top three finishers in their categories: senior Liam Wheless, Retail Merchandising; freshman Lupe Chaves, Principles of Hospitality and Tourism; and sophomore Rodney Graham, Principles of Business Management and Administration.
These members qualified to compete in the International Career Development Conference (ICDC) in Nashville, Tennessee April 23rd-26th. The categories will be the same, but instead of just competing against other high schools in South Carolina, West Ashley High DECA members will compete against DECA members from across the nation.