Angelina Ouk (283), Una Liu (283)

While DECA is a prolific preparatory business organization with over 200,000 members worldwide, not many Central students are familiar with it. Central’s own chapter started only two years ago, finding success in retaining thirty active members. Even so, current club President Una Liu (283) seeks to expand the club. 

DECA is the place to start for students who plan to pursue business. With courses like AP Microeconomics no longer being offered, many students have had to seek support elsewhere. DECA is the only competitive business club at Central that allows members to compete through a range of business topics, including business administration, finance, marketing, hospitality, and tourism. Members are expected to dedicate time outside of school preparing for competitions to ensure Central’s success by studying for the multiple choice exams and roleplays. The exams test each member’s knowledge of the individual events that they are competing in. With DECA’s first competition of the school year being held at Temple University on December 8th, members are working diligently to sweep the podium.

A newer member of the club, Bangle Wei (285), shares what gravitated him toward the club and what prompted him to stay. He says that he wants to use the knowledge of financial literacy that he learns from DECA to “launch [his] own business.” Cindy Lin (284), another new member, mentioned how “DECA benefits [her] a lot in the long run, no matter what [she] decides to pursue” because she wants to enhance her public speaking skills, a primary focus in DECA. She has also “learned [how] to take advantage of opportunities,”’ such as the Innovation Bowl, a competition where high school students in Philly compete for $5,000 by creating a business prototype. She learned about it from DECA’s Google Classroom page, where business internships and opportunities are posted. Thomas Nguyen (284), the public relations (PR) officer for DECA, says that the club has prepared him for his plans to “become a realtor and start [his] own real estate brokerage” in hopes of using some of the money that he earns to “fund the construction of free housing for those who are going through tough times.” Applying the “numerous skills that [he has] learned throughout [his] time in DECA, such as professional communication as well as critical thinking,” gives him a leg up in his future business endeavors. At DECA, students explore beyond academics, applying what they learn to the real world and make significant changes for their community. 

Every year, DECA members have the chance to compete with 22,000 other peers passionate in the business field. Last year, Liu was the first person from Central’s chapter to make their way to internationals at Orlando, Florida near Universal Studios with the help of President Davis, Mrs. Thornton (previous director of diversity, equity, and inclusion), Mr. Grow (Central’s DECA sponsor), and Ms. Owarzani (Lincoln High School’s DECA advisor). At internationals she competed against people from Puerto Rico, the US, Canada, and Guam. She hopes more people from Central can participate in this year’s internationals in California. 

Liu strongly believes that DECA provides a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel the world to meet other industry professionals and students who share a similar passion for business. That’s why she is working to make DECA a recognized club at Central like the current Robotics team. As of right now, Robotics is a largely funded club that works to promote diversity within the STEM industry. In Liu’s last year at Central, she hopes to do the same with DECA but by working with administration and alumni to gather more resources in order to spread DECA’s cause of fostering emerging entrepreneurs to use their newfound knowledge to change the world and become the next generation of leaders.