During the mere two years South Lyon Easts’ Deca club has been up and running, the chapter has sent 13 students to the International Career Development Conference (ICDC).
“Since last year was our first year we were still learning about how the competition and different events work. This year, we doubled our members, held a community service event together, and sent many more people to States and ICDC,” Ivanka Tasevski, Vice president of Community Service said.
So, how does this student-led club do it?
“We prepared for districts by going over everyone’s events and what to expect as well as doing a mock district’s with North Farmington to help get some real experience,” Chapter President, Roman Chavez said.
In addition, Co-Vice president Yajat Verma explained, “For states, the people participating in written events practiced presenting their project to each other. For ICDC we practiced our presentations and our vocab in front of other people in the hotel.”
The inside view on the meetings is loud and chaotic, switched to quiet and serious, as the chapter is still so new the committee members still search for a healthy medium.
This newborn club is no doubt a success but it comes with difficulties and much room for improvement.
One of the largest problems the chapter faces is finance. “We plan to make a lot of changes next year, from the board to the way things are run. We hope this will help us lower costs and make an easier time for everyone,” Yash Avula, Co-Vice President said.
Another big problem the chapter faces is in terms of organization. “I definitely want to study earlier in the coming years, initially I was confused and wasn’t sure how to prepare,” Alexa Stovel, chapter member said.
This club has provided students with a lot to carry on with them in their futures.
“Deca has made me much more confident for sure,” said Rohan Jolly, chapter member, “I’ve specifically learned a lot about marketing.”
Along with vital skills the club also provides new learning experiences. “Deca has impacted me by allowing me to learn through talking in front of a judge and preparing for my competition in different ways,” Yash said.
With an immense amount of preparation across a hard working few months it seems all these students are doing is preparation, but in reality that isn’t all what the club is about.
“My favorite part was states, the entire club is fun because you get to meet new people in similar positions as you, especially when preparing for your events,” Rohan expressed.
“Dressing up for the competition is a ton of fun!” Ivanka Tasevski added.
The club’s environment is engulfed with passion, knowledge, and a ton of fun. “My least favorite thing about Deca? Nothing. I really love Deca.” Alexa Stovel states.
