Western DECA students place in national Top 10 at the ICDC

Western Washington University’s Distribution Education Club of America team traveled to Washington, D.C. and placed 15 members in the finals with seven finishing in the national top 10 at the 2014 International Career Development Conference April 23 to 26.

The ICDC roughly brings 2,000 college students from around the world to compete in business simulations and scenarios. Almost every aspect of business is represented, from business simulation scenarios to case studies and prepared presentations. Students had the opportunity to test themselves against the best and the brightest from other universities.

Western brought 25 members, the largest student delegation of all Washington state schools. Students presented to business professionals from the D.C. area, creating a link between their studies and real-life business scenarios. This is the fourth year that the Western DECA team competed at the ICDC, and was the most successful trip to date.

Western’s DECA team had 15 total finalists. The team had a national champion, second-place winner, three team members landed third place and seven placed in the top 10 in their respective categories.

The following competitors placed in the top three of their respective categories: Liz Reynolds, Vancouver, 1st place in Travel and Tourism; Kaleb Ode, Sumner, 2nd place in Human Resource Management; Elle McGlocklin, Port Angeles, 3rd place in Marketing Management; Joe Sturgeon, Woodinville, 3rd place in team Business to Business Marketing; Danny Sullivan, Woodinville, in team Business to Business Marketing, 3rd place; Hannah Bouscher, Spokane, 3rd place in team Advertising Campaign; Hayden LeMaster, Sumner, 3rd place in team Advertising Campaign; and McCall Schilling, Kenmore, 3rd place in team Advertising Campaign.

The following competitors placed in the top 10 of their respective categories:

Lauren Molitor, Anacortes, Human Resource Management; Nilofar Ganjaie, Sammamish, Restaurant and Food Service Management; Jai Mannatt, Victoria, British Columbia, in team International Marketing; and Josh Snyder, Woodinville, in International Marketing.

The following competitors were national finalists of their respective categories: Mark Maximos, Cairo, Egypt, in International Marketing; Terry Thammawan, Bangkok, Thailand, in International Marketing; and Tyler Dyer, Kent, Marketing Management.

Western’s DECA chapter welcomes all majors and will be electing the next year’s officers in the coming month. With tightening budgets and an expanding membership, Western’s DECA chapter is continually fundraising. Anyone interested in sponsoring the club’s meetings, speakers, or trips, or who simply wants more information about the club, should contact the club’s leadership at wwudeca@gmail.com.