Members of John Jay’s DECA Business Club are still riding on the adrenaline generated at the DECA Regional Competition, which took place at Rockland Community College on Wednesday, January 8.
The competition was robust; there were teams from 24 schools in Rockland, Westchester, Dutchess, Orange, Ulster and Albany Counties. Thirty-three John Jay students participated, and eight progressed to States. Congratulations to Colin Belders, Lucy Crimmins, Benjamin Kalish, Daniel Krampf, Ryla Krulik, Keira Spellman, Evan Templeton and Daisy Zander!
We caught up with some of the competitors in their marketing class, on the other side of the weekend. Reliving the intensity of participating in role-playing scenarios and creating business plans with ten minutes of prep brought them right back to the excitement of the event. It was the business student version of Chopped.
Juniors Henry Dauterman, Will Hershey, Matthew Ebert and Johnny Rudin describe their assignment. They had to create a business plan for Fun Times, an amusement park. The target customer: children ages five to 15, whose parents work from home.
“We built a plan around Fun Times’ mascot,” said Matthew. “We also used social media influencers to reach working parents.”
Ben Kalish and Evan Templeton were assigned a sporting goods store that wanted to increase its market share with women. “We built a business plan that leveraged the WNBA's success,” said Ben.
DECA draws students with an interest in business. The first-year club, advised by business education teachers Jen Drapala and Michael Cohen, offers students the opportunity to participate in individual and team-based events that simulate real-world business scenarios. The students are enthusiastic about improving their public speaking and leadership skills.
“I joined DECA because I will be studying business in college,” said Will.
“I want to learn the craft that is business and sales,” said Henry.
“I’d like to go into business law,” said Stella.
Like one would expect from a business club, John Jay's DECA chapter has brand assets. Evan shared its slogan: “What the hecka, you’re not in DECA?” The competition photos show the club's hand signal. Pointer fingers touching at the tips and pinkies criss-crossed form - what else! - the diamond shaped DECA logo.