Rockwall-Heath students win multiple awards at National Leadership Conference

(HEATH, TX — May 16, 2018) Students from Rockwall-Heath High School recently attended the Business Professionals of America (BPA) National Leadership Conference, where they won multiple awards, producing 16 national qualifiers and nine national champions in three major events.

Rockwall-Heath Hawk chapter members joined more than 5,500 other conference delegates from across the nation to compete in national level business skills competitions, attend leadership development, workshops, general sessions, and national officer candidate campaigns and elections, as well as participate in internship opportunities.

“Attending the National Leadership Conference is not only an honor, but a testament to the hard work that each of these students has put into their school year to excel in business education and training,” said Chapter Advisor Misty Rayson, who teaches Audio Video Productions. “It is the culmination of a year’s worth of focus and dedication put forth by the members of our local chapter of Business Professionals of America at Rockwall-Heath High School.”

Colton Gross, BPA Senior, participated in the Torch Award Program, which is designed to promote professionalism and leadership in both career development and personal growth. Colton built a rich catalog of service and leadership experiences to earn the Ambassador Torch Award, the most prestigious Torch Award given by BPA.

Daria Coutch was flawless and brought home the National Title and gold medal by winning first place in SQL Database among champions competing from 25 states.

The Software Engineering Team of Bernard Fay, Colton Gross, Erin Jarrett and Michael Jarrett, won the National Title in this esteemed virtual event after a full day of entertaining competitors with their game design by winning first place after three months of technical evaluations, team interviews and demonstrations.

The Broadcast News Production Team, Nick Harris, Dillan Lincoln, Cameron Montgomery and Martin Narvaez, ousted their competition when presenting their 5-minute newscast followed by a one-minute (on-the-go) news story to win first place and bring home the National Title.

The Network Design Team, Edaline Engmann, Rebecca Rose Nichols, Robbie Schull and Jimmy Weng, competed many technical evaluations and team presentations, and won advancement to National Finals, where they capped up this competitive year in the Top 10 of the Nation.

The Website Design Team, Daria Coutch, Rhonda Giadolor, Jan Morgenstern and Brooke Smith, advanced to the National Semifinals, producing the best event results ever in Rockwall ISD.

Robby Schull advanced to the semi-finals of Computer Security Fundamentals, tying the best result in Rockwall ISD.

Nine students took professional certification exams on 11 areas and earned a Rockwall ISD record 20 qualifications in areas such as Database Administration, Windows Operations System, Java, Software Development, Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe Photoshop.

Business Professionals of America is the premier Career and Technical Student Organization (CTSO) for high school, college, and middle school students preparing for careers in business, finance and management information systems and other related fields. The organization’s activities and programs complement classroom instruction by giving students practical experience through application of the skills learned at school. The mission of Business Professionals of America is to contribute to the preparation of global professionals through the advancement of leadership, citizenship, academic, and technological skills.

Submitted press release.

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