MOUNT VERNON — Top Business and Finance Academy students from the Knox County Career Center will be attending the Business Professionals of America 2011 National Leadership Conference, “Stand Out From the Crowd,” in Washington, D.C., May 3 to 8.
Nikki Sherbahn and Bri Dalenberg, who comprise the Presentation Management Team, and Courtney Strait, Steven Shannon, Zac Litton, Amber Drabick, Chelsie Moran and Nikkie Wheeler, who comprise the Parliamentary Procedure Team, will join over 5,000 other conference delegates from across the nation to participate in national-level business skill competitions, workshops, general sessions, and the national officer candidate campaigns and elections. Besides having the opportunity to excel, they’ll experience the history and government of our nation through Washington, D.C., monuments, memorials and museums.
According to Tammy Klein, chapter advisor and teacher of the KCCC Business and Finance Academy, the conference will be the culmination of a school year’s worth of business workforce education and training received by members of the Knox County Career Center chapter of Business Professionals of America. Also, Klein complimented the teams on the work and dedication that they committed to the project.
For the Presentation Management contest, Wheeler and Dalenberg had to create and present a multimedia project to reinforce to local business leaders and school personnel the importance of internship programs at the high school level. Sherbahn will also receive the BPA Ambassador Award while in D.C. — a national award based on activities like community service, knowledge about business, and patriotism.
For the Parliamentary Procedure contest, Strait, Shannon, Litton, Drabick, Moran and Wheeler practiced for months on the proper way to conduct a professional business meeting using Roberts Rules of Order as a guide. The parliamentary team will also have to take a written test for their knowledge on the subject. Preparing for the contests involved extensive research, teamwork, technological skills and practice.
Klein said the unique highlight of the conference this year will be the National Leadership Conference Opening Session at the foot of the Washington Monument. All conference attendees will stand together at this historic site as the first Career/Technical Student Organization to gather at the National Mall.
