Wyoming DECA officer Team (Left to right) Makenna Tucker, Collin Krueger, Sydney O’Brien, Xiner Luo, and Dusty Lick.
DECA’s international theme for this school year, “Maximize their Momentum” set the stage for the Marketing students who attended the Fall DECA Entrepreneurship Conference held at the University of Wyoming on October 25th.
The marketing and Entrepreneurship DECA conference is the first statewide event of the year. Chapter officers and competitors come together to enhance their leadership and teamwork skills and knowledge.
As part of the conference, the students toured the University of Wyoming. In additional to the general tour, the students were treated to a tour of the athletic facilities.
A fascinating part of this conference was an Entrepreneurship panel. Business leaders participating in the panel were Stephen Hanlon, Director of Health & Bioscience Innovation Hub, Josh Dorrell, Chief Executive Officer for the Wyoming business Council and Ruth Williams, Owner of Sugar Mouse Cup Cake House and Tea Shoppe. The business professionals shared the journey, joys and challenges of being an entrepreneur.
An important part of this conference is competition. To help students develop and refine their ability to solve business & marketing problems, students were given an opportunity to present a case problem to business professionals. Following the students’ presentation, the business professionals (Judges) provided suggestions for improvement.
There were two catagories of competition, advanced and novice. The advanced competitors were asked to identify a new target market and create a new marketing plan. The novice students were challenged with a distribution and operational case problem.
The top students were recognized at an awards ceremony and presented with award of excellence.
To prepare for competition, students take classes in Marketing, Management, Entrepreneurship, and related classes.
Marketing Education and DECA is a high school instructional program designed to prepare students for marketing, management, finance, entrepreneurship, hospitality, and related careers. Through Marketing & Management Education, students prepare for career-sustaining, mid-management, entrepreneurial or executive positions. Students receive classroom instruction, participate in Internships, and compete in DECA.
