Release Date: March 11, 2018

Contact: Laura Wheeler, Business Teacher & DECA Advisor

Hamilton Wenham Regional High School
775 Bay Road, S. Hamilton, MA 01982
(978) 335-3638 | l.wheeler@hwschools.net

Hamilton Wenham shines at DECA State Career Development Conference

The Hamilton Wenham DECA Chapter returned home triumphant on Saturday, March 10,
from the 59th annual Massachusetts DECA State Career Development Conference (SCDC) at
the Marriott Copley and Hynes Convention Center in Boston with six students qualifying for
the International Career Development Conference (ICDC) in Atlanta, GA. Forty-six Hamilton
Wenham students joined over 2,900 students, advisors, and business professionals
attending the conference where students compete in over 50 categories of marketing,
hospitality, finance and entrepreneurship.
Hamilton Wenham took home one 1st Place Overall trophy, one 2nd Place Overall trophy,
two 4th Place Overall trophies, six Top 10 Overall plaques, and four medallions for placing
first, second, or third in an individual event:

Student (grade) Category Award

Tom Kain (10) & Financial Services Team 1st Place Overall
John Farnham (12) Decision Making 1st Place Role Play 2
Lily Waterman (9) Hospitality & Tourism 2nd Place Overall
Professional Selling 3rd Place Comprehensive Exam
 Spencer Poore (12) Principles of Finance 4th Place Overall
2nd Place Comprehensive Exam
Kaili Guyer (12) & Buying & Merchandising 4th Place Overall
Brooke Pippins (12) Research Project
Caroline Donellan (12) & Public Relations Project Top 10 Overall
James Goudie (12)
Amy Thissell (12) & Fashion Merchandising Top 10 Overall
Julia Putnam (11) Promotion Plan
Griffin Penn (12) Entrepreneurship Startup Top 10 Overall
Business Plan
Eileen Campbell (10) Financial Consulting Top 10 Overall
Owen Leonard (9) Principles of Finance Top 10 Overall
Olivia Patt (10) & Buying & Merchandising Top 10 Overall
Caroline Pratt (10) Team Decision Making
Chloe Belliveau (11) & Buying & Merchandising 2nd Place Role Play 1
Emily Vanderwilden (11) Team Decision Making

Additionally, Hamilton Wenham earned 9 allocations for the prestigious Leadership

Development Academy at the ICDC in Atlanta through chapter campaigns on the state and
national levels. Any DECA member can apply for the Leadership Academy and applications
are due by March 14.
The Hamilton Wenham Quiz Bowl team composed of juniors Tom Colucci, Jake Harrison,
Tyler Vesey, and Cam Guyer held strong in the first round, beating Peabody Veterans High
School, but fell to number one seed Algonquin in round two.
DECA is a co-curricular organization of high school students that builds transferrable skills
for college and career with over 200,000 members in all 50 states, four US territories,
Canada, Mexico, Germany, Korea, and more. DECA helps students develop skills for
successful careers, builds self-esteem, provides leadership opportunities, and stresses
community involvement and service.
Led by Business Teacher and DECA Advisor Laura Wheeler, the program is in its second
year at the high school. Wheeler was joined by faculty volunteers who donated their time,
and as it turned out their snow days, to chaperone the trip. The chaperone “dream team” as
Wheeler calls it included Stefanie Rogal, Academic Coordinator for the RISE program, Dr.
Jennifer Sauriol, 6-12 Mathematics Curriculum Leader, Prudence Pilkanis, 6-12 Wellness
Curriculum Coordinator, Matt Fitzgibbons, Guidance Counselor, and Math Teacher Kevin
Beckwith.
The SCDC took place over March 8-10 with principles, series and team competitors taking a
100-question comprehensive exam then performing 2 role-plays in front of business
professionals who volunteer as judges. Role-plays are common business scenarios where
the student is asked to solve a problem and present their solution to the judge while
covering specific performance indicators. Project competitors presented their research and
prepared papers at the conference.
DECA member at Hamilton Wenham must be enrolled in a qualifying business related
course during the school year or have taken a qualifying course during a previous school
year. Qualifying courses include Financial Literacy, Sports & Entertainment Marketing,
Economics and Math and Finance.

To learn more about DECA, visit www.deca.org and www.madeca.org.

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