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Cape High DECA students bring home state awards

February 20, 2019

The 2019 DECA Awards ceremony Feb. 7 brought together high school students from around the state to celebrate and recognize their accomplishments.

DECA, Distributed Education Clubs of America, is an organization that provides students with opportunities and activities related to marketing and marketing education. It prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality and management in high schools and colleges around the globe, and aims to help develop their skills in the areas of career and technical understanding, leadership, civic consciousness and social awareness.

This year, 31 students from Cape Henlopen High School competed, and 27 were first-time attendees. Of the 17 Cape students who placed, nine took first place in their competitions.

“This was an outstanding year for our DECA students,” said Gabriel Martinez, Cape DECA advisor and marketing teacher. “Our students all worked really hard to prepare, so I was very happy for them and very proud of them. Their recognition was much deserved.”

Students competed in a range of topics including business management, marketing, hospitality services, and buying and merchandising, to name a few.

Individual awards include: Principles of Business Management and Administration, Taylor Johnson, third place, and Dylan Roberts, second place; Principles of Marketing, Christian Armstrong, third place; Apparel and Accessories Marketing, Kareena Keswani, third place; and Sports and Entertainment Marketing Individuals Series, Austin Rhue, first place.

Team awards include: Hospitality Services Team Decision Making, Carolyn Wood and Abby Bucklin, first place for the second consecutive year; Buying and Merchandising Team Decision Making, Emily Racz and Riley Roberts, first place, Kaela Rothstein and Dilvi Patel, third place; Marketing Management Team Decision Making, Sammi Mason and Ben Rothstein, first place; and Entrepreneurship Team Decision Making, Quinn Peery and Alec Stanton, first place, and Blaine Davis and Mark McNaught, second place.

Four students were also given first-place certificates of recognition for a national online virtual competition that took place earlier this year. Blaine Davis and Mark McNaught earned first place in the Sports Entertainment Virtual Business Simulation, and Jack Wiggins and Zachary Burris earned first place in the Personal Finance Virtual Business Simulation.

In addition, Nayelis Navarro was named Delaware DECA vice president, and Alex Stanton won the state pin contest, which means that during the International Career Development Conference, the Delaware delegation will all be wearing and trading a Cape-designed pin.

Last but not least, earning the title of the Delaware DECA 2019 Marketing Advisor of the Year was Cape’s own Gabriel Martinez. “I’m very honored and surprised by this recognition,” said Martinez. “I love what I do, and seeing the students succeed is really what it’s all about. When everyone is recognized by the state for their hard work and dedication, that is just the icing on the cake!” 

DECA’s International Career Development Conference will take place in Orlando, Fla., in April. For more information, go to www.delawaredeca.org.

 

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