Monthly Archives: October 2011

ACTE Outstanding Business Education Students Award Winners Announced

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The ACTE Business Education Division Outstanding Business Education Students Awards have been announced, and once again FBLA-PBL members did outstanding!  The award, sponsored by the Association for Career and Technical Education, is designed to provide recognition to five secondary and five postsecondary outstanding students who have demonstrated leadership potential through enrollment in business courses and involvement in career and technical student organization activities, as well as the school and community. Students will be recognized with a plaque at the ACTE Annual Convention & Career Tech Expo in St. Louis on November 17, 2011.

Congratulations FBLA-PBL Members:

Kim-Mai Le
Winner for the secondary division in Region 2 is a Senior at DuPont Manual High School in Kentucky. She served as the 2010-11 FBLA National Secretary and is a current member of the Kentucky FBLA State Officer Team.
Alexandra Blodgett
Winner for the secondary division in Region 3 is a Senior at Macon High School in Missouri and serves as the current FBLA North Central Vice President.
Nina Kamath
Winner for the secondary division in Region 5 is a senior at Lynbrook high School.  She served as the 2010-11 FBLA National Parliamentarian and is a current member of the California FBLA State Officer Team and the Western Region Action Council.
Sarah Rasheid
Post-Secondary Division winner for Region 2 is currently enrolled at the University of South Florida (USF), majoring in business marketing with a minor in leadership studies. She has been involved in FBLA-PBL since 2002 and has served numerous positions on her local, district, and state officer teams. She currently serves as Florida PBL State President and the current PBL Southern Region Vice President.
Jake Barreau
Post-Secondary Division winner for Region 3 is a senior marketing and Spanish major at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Jake has been involved with FBLA-PBL since his freshmen year in high school, during which time he has attended six National Leadership Conferences and has placed in the top ten 8 times.  He currently serves as the PBL National President.
Tania Sederdahl
Post-secondary Division winner for Region 4 is a senior accounting major at the University of Texas-Arlington.  She served as last year’s PBL Mountain Plains Region Vice President. She has taken first place in several competitions at the state level, and sixth place in Business Ethics at the national level.
Derek Kent
Post-secondary Division winner for Region 5 is a senior in pre-law economics and marketing at Utah State University (USU). He started his activity with FBLA-PBL his senior year of high school. Derek is PBL’s Western Region Vice President.

FBLA Eastern Region VP Wins $10,000 Scholarship from Nordstrom

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National FBLA Eastern Region Vice President Hasher Nisar (second from right) is shown with Principal Kevin Ryan (right) with Nordstrom Representatives Jerzy Romanowski and Erika Camacho

Hasher Nisar was awarded the Nordstrom Scholarship during a surprise announcement during his AP Biology class at Cheshire High School in Connecticut. He was selected as one of 80 students in the country to receive $10,000. Applications were reviewed by regional committees, comprising of local community leaders. Applicants had to make it through a semi-finalist and finalist round. Applicants who made it to the finalist round were interviewed in person. The scholarship is paid out to the student in equal installments of $2,500 over four years to the applicant’s college of choice.

$500 March of Dimes Mini-Grants Awarded to 20 FBLA-PBL Chapters

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Congratulations to the following schools for being awarded $500 March of Dimes mini-grants to help organize their Prematurity Awareness Month events this November.

Visit marchofdimesyouth.com for ideas on how your chapter can get involved, along with a fund-raising guide to build two weeks of awareness and other activities around World Prematurity Day and Prematurity Awareness Month.

Sunshine High School Newbern, AL
University of South Carolina Columbia, SC
University of South Florida-Tampa Tampa, FL
University of Miami Coral Gables, FL
Herzing University Madison Campus Madison, WI
North Augusta High School North Augusta, SC
West Hill High School Stamford, CT
T.W. Josey Comprehensive High School Augusta, GA
Wyoming State Chapter Cheyenne, WY
Wellington-Napoleon R-IX Wellington, MO
Brunswick High School Brunswick, GA
Hugoton USD 210 Hugoton, KS
Twin River High School Genoa, NE
Overhills Middle School Spring Lake, NC
Crittendon County Marion, KY
Bloomfield High School Bloomfield, MO
Bothell High School Bothell, WA
Lakota High School Lakota, ND
Miami Beach Senior High School Miami Beach, FL
Alburnett High School Alburnett, IA

NBC’s Education Nation Summit

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Jake Barreau, 2011-12 PBL National President poses with Steve Capus, President of NBC News

As I began my term as PBL National President, I received an email about a conference that NBC was hosting and my presence was requested at the conference on behalf of FBLA-PBL.  I sort of disregarded it at first as spam but eventually decided to forward it on to National Staff.  They thought it would be a great idea and an excellent opportunity for the student voice to be heard.

So, from September 25-27, Jean Buckley (President & CEO), Taylor Sarman (FBLA National President), and I traveled to New York City to convene with about 250 of the nation’s educators, leaders, politicians, and representatives to discuss the state of our nation’s education at NBC’s Education Nation Summit.

I’ll be honest, when I entered the conference, I was one of only about six students there, so I wasn’t sure how much voice we would actually have in the conference.  I was most surprised by how interactive and welcoming everyone was toward the students.  They truly valued our opinion.  I even got to ask a question at the ‘Global Influence: What Can We Learn?’ panel on behalf of Career and Technical Education (at about 33:30 minutes).

CTSO National Presidents got a chance to meet President Bill Clinton

The aforementioned panel really shed a light on the disparities between different global education systems and why the U.S. isn’t at the same level.  They simply place education on the highest of pedestals.  Some countries even have children going to school all year long.  Obviously my experience with career and technical education and involvement with FBLA-PBL has supplemented my overall education and truly prepared me for the workplace, so that is why I asked what other countries were doing in regards to CTE.  I learned that a balance is necessary and an academic and hands-on combination could just be a recipe for success.

I also had the chance to meet some amazing people and hear their views on education, including:

  • Lebron James
  • First Lady Laura Bush
  • Jennifer Garner
  • NBC’s own Brian Williams & Tom Brokaw
  • Governor Scott Walker (WI)
  • Anne Bryant, Executive Director of the National School BoardAssociation
Zak Kukoff & Jonathan Yan, CA FBLAers

Zak Kukoff & Jonathan Yan, CA FBLAers and Innovation Challenge 2nd place winners, did an amazing job!

Overall, the conference was amazing and very well put together.  We had the chance to be a part of live tapings of NBC productions as audience members.  The summit also featured an Innovation Challenge for th

ree teams of students to develop and present their idea

s for new programs.  The team that took second place, TruantToday, a program utilizing social media to track tardiness and update parents, were even FBLA members!  That just shows how far our great organization reaches!

 

We had a wonderful dinner at the American Museum of Natural History and heard some more speakers.  Before leaving on our last day, we were able to get a picture with the closing speaker, President Bill Clinton!  He was very interested in us as students and our student organizations (SkillsUSA, DECA, and FBLA-PBL).

This conference was the chance of a lifetime for me and my very first time in the Big Apple!  I am very honored to have had the opportunity to not only represent FBLA-PBL at the national level, but to be able to put education in the spotlight and have my voice heard as a student!

 

 

 

Preparing a Program of Work

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McKenna Murray, 2011-12 FBLA National Secretary

Preparing a program of work or plan of action can be a daunting task. It is often difficult to know what areas to focus on and what would help the chapter grow and develop the most. Luckily there are a few things that can make writing a program of work easier.

The most important thing is to be organized and detailed. The more detailed the program of work is, the easier it is to carry out the goals. Write down every step, even the steps that seem obvious or too simple to write down. It may take longer to be this detailed and precise, but less time will be spent in the long run because the goals are more thoroughly laid out.

One important area to focus on is recruitment. It always important to keep attracting new members and it is important to outline ways to do this in the program of work. Brainstorm ideas that would help get the word out about FBLA. For example, your chapter could make posters that attract attention and get people excited about FBLA.

In the program of work you would list all the steps that would be necessary to complete this recruitment idea. For example:

  • Brainstorm ideas for posters and decide how many to make
  • Create an outline of each poster
  • Scout out areas that would attract the most attention
  • Have a sign up list for people willing to help make posters
  • Decide on a date, place, and time to make the posters
  • Obtain the materials (paper, paint, etc.)
  • Make the posters
  • Hang them up at the locations already picked out

Another area that is important to focus on is community service and/or the March of Dimes. Brainstorm ideas for projects that would be fun and that would benefit the March of Dimes or the community. For example, your chapter could plan a barbeque with all the proceeds going to either the March of Dimes or the community.

It is also important to factor state and national programs into your chapter’s program of work. When you are making your program of work make sure to have read both the state and national programs of work before you start, and to have them both accessible. By doing this, you have a great example and your can more easily factor in goals that will help both the state and national level.

Overall, when preparing a program of work make sure to set goals that are achievable and that will help your chapter grow the most.