Hamilton DECA — Charger Press

Photos from Hamilton DECA.

Natalie Olson

This past month, 32 students from Hamilton attended the ICDC DECA competition in Anaheim, California. This is a new all-time high for Hamilton DECA and an amazing testament to the hard work and dedication of not only the students, but the advisor Mrs. Amanda Fields as well. ICDC stands for the International Career Development Conference and serves as a way for students to compete on an international level.

In all, there were high school students representing all 50 states as well as several other countries including China, Canada, Guam, and Germany. Students complete their preliminary competition over two days. They may compete on a third day based on the results from the first two days of competition, which is announced at the first awards session. Tests and projects compete on day one while all role plays occur on day two. Then, on the morning of day three, finalists are announced, which recognizes the top 20 in each event. Those students then compete in their event one more time that afternoon before winning scores are calculated.

In total, the 32 Hamilton students competed across 19 different events. At awards, students represent their state, or country, instead of their school. This year, Hamilton had a total of six students make it on stage as finalists. This is more students than any other Wisconsin High school. To put that into perspective, over 100,000 members compete in DECA and each event has roughly 225 competitors. This amount consists of the top competitors from over 50 states and few countries. Of that, only the top 20 make it as a finalist.

Rohit Washikar and Adit Bhootra received two medals and a 3rd place DECA glass, or trophy, in the Innovation Plan Project. Alex Yan and Raj Ramanathan received two medals and were recognized as top 10 finalists in the Entrepreneurship Team Event and finished in 5th place overall. Rohan Nuthi received three medals and was a top 10 finalist in Retail Merchandising Individual Series and finished 4th overall. Jishnu Jayesh received a finalist medal in the Principles of Business Management and Administration Event and was in the top 20 overall. Congratulations to the hard work of these students as well as every other competitor!

A few finalists were interviewed on their thoughts after the end of ICDC.

Washikar stated, “Joining DECA was one of the best decisions I could have made as a high schooler. I joined as a way to make friends and add to my college applications. I had no clue how fun, enjoyable, and rewarding it could be. After not qualifying for ICDC in my sophomore year, I worked very hard, did role-play and test prep junior year, and became an ICDC finalist. This year, my partner and I were able to take third place at ICDC. The feeling of hoping to hear my name called to the stage with my heart racing is one that I'll never forget. The level of competition at ICDC is unreal, and I couldn't be prouder of myself and my partner, seeing our hard work pay off.”

Jayesh adds, “ICDC was really fun. I met a lot of other DECA students and formed great connections with them. When I was at ICDC, I really enjoyed the competitive environment, but the experiences that I had there was truly what made ICDC special. Things like going to the case studies and tests all allowed me to display my communication skills and my technical knowledge, while simultaneously improving my skills in those areas. When I was called on stage, I was really happy when I got on stage since my hard work and dedication finally paid.”

Other than competition, ICDC provides a multitude of opportunities for students to further develop professional skills. At the conference, many large businesses and colleges set up a fair where students are able to walk through and talk to representatives about internships, scholarships, and upcoming events. Certain businesses also set up interactive activities available for students to learn from and connect with the companies on a deeper level. This is beneficial for networking and exploring options for higher education or post college career opportunities.

Furthermore, the conference still leaves room for students to have fun. On the first day, DECA provides transportation to Disneyland for a day so the students can enjoy themselves before the competition ramps up. DECA also closes off Universal for one night so it is only open to the students. They also offer entertainment during the opening and closing session. This year, students watched a performance by the dance crew the Jabbawokeez at the opening session. These events serve to enrich student development and provide diverse environments for them to socialize and further connect with their peers. It helps to relieve stress and allows students to enjoy the conference instead of living in a perpetual state of stress.

Every year, all students are given fun items that are specific to their state. DECA Inc. provides every student with a set number of pins to stick on their lanyards. This year, every Wisconsin competitor received three pins of Bucky Badger in a cow print blazer, four pins of a VW bus, as well as the yearly themed DECA standard pin. Along with this, students received cow print cowboy hats. At the statewide meeting, students were given glowing tambourines as an extra surprise for the opening session. These items are used by students as bargaining chips as they trade with other states for their items. Hats are in high demand and can even go for up to $100. This provides students with an easy icebreaker to begin conversations with people from other places. It can be difficult to start conversations with those you don’t know, but DECA encourages students to interact with each other and build lasting connections.

Mrs. Fields has been the DECA advisor for the past eight years. In this time, she has attended eight ICDC’s and had 15 students make it on stage. Hamilton has one of the strongest DECA chapters in the state. When asked her thoughts on this year’s ICDC Mrs. Fields claimed, “It is incredible to see so many of our students not only qualify for ICDC, but make the stage as medalists, finalists, and overall champions. Our competitors put so much work into their competitive success and it is so rewarding to see them be successful. The month of May always feels strange now that the daily after school competition prep that they’ve been doing since September is over, but I could not be more proud of them.” Make sure to follow the chapter @hamilton_deca on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok to stay updated!