13th Consecutive National Win for Stephenson BPA Team

Online, May 3, 2012 (Newswire.com) - Top students from Stephenson High School attended the Business Professionals of America 2012 National Leadership Conference in Chicago, April 25-28. The theme of the conference was "REACHING NEW HEIGHTS." Stephenson's students did just that by earning eight awards.

At the awards session Saturday evening, nine Stephenson students were called onstage to be recognized for their achievements in their competitions. Stephenson captured two first-place awards.

Maintaining their winning streak, the parliamentary procedures team took home 1st place for the 13th consecutive year. Members of the team are Lexi Johnson, Austin Newlin, Jonathan Newlin, Kyle Raboin, Duncan Radandt, Tessa Rye, and Tayler Topper. To prepare for the competition, the parliamentary procedure team regularly met three mornings each week throughout the school year. The team practiced using mock agendas and by taking written tests from the Shane Dunbar series.

Brandon Raboin took top honors by earning the 1st place award in the Digital Media competition. In the Digital Media event, Brandon Raboin created a promotional video for the 2013 national conference which will be held in Orlando, Florida. His use of green screen technology helped set his video apart from the other 45 competitors.

Additional individual awards were won by the parliamentary procedures team who had five finalists in the parliamentary procedures concepts written contest. Earning those awards were 2nd place-Kyle Raboin, 3rd place-Austin Newlin, 5th place-Tessa Rye, 6th place-Jonathan Newlin, and 10th place-Lexi Johnson. The Parliamentary Procedure Concepts event measures the student's knowledge of Robert's Rules of Order using a multiple-choice test. A total of 406 students took the Parliamentary Procedure Concepts test.

Michaela Marks took 6th place (out of 45 competitors) in the Administrative Support Project Individual contest. In the Administrative Research Project Individual event, Michaela Marks researched the impact of hand-held technology in business offices and then presented her findings to the judges.

In the non-competitive category of Torch Awards, Megan Zahorik received an Ambassador Torch Award.at the honors reception held Friday. Ambassador Awards are given to students who have demonstrated leadership and service in school and community activities. At the same reception, advisor Sharon Wyble was also recognized for her 35 years as a BPA advisor. Stephenson student Kaylyn Gustafson also attended the conference,

Over 5,000 other conference delegates from across the nation participated in national level business skills competitions, workshops, general sessions, and the national officer candidate campaigns and elections. Keynote speaker was Eddie Slowikowski, who shared his experiences as a sub-four-minute mile runner, international volunteer and self-taught dancer. The special event of the week was held at Navy Pier in downtown Chicago. Stephenson students attended the Broadway production of Jersey Boys, visited the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower and Millennium Park, and viewed the Chicago architecture while on a river cruise.

The Stephenson students, advisors Peggy Grille and Sharon Wyble, along with their BPA State Director Maurice Henderson and former state officer Nate Cradit enjoyed dinner at the colorful and interesting Buca di Beppo restaurant in Chicago.

Students throughout Michigan stepped up to the plate and made it happen as Michigan kept its reign as the state that wins the most awards at BPA national leadership conferences. This year Michigan's Secondary Division earned 98 awards in the top 10; with 39 of those in the top 3. Stephenson earned 8 national competitive awards. Of those top 3 award winners, 4 of the 39 were from Stephenson-10% of Michigan's top 3 awards.

Business Professionals of America is a national organization for high school and college students preparing for careers in business and office occupations. The organization's activities and programs complement classroom instruction by giving students practical experience through application of the skills learned at school. Business Professionals of America acts as a cohesive agent in the nation-wide networking of education, business and industry, and is contributing to the preparation of a world-class workforce through the advancement of leadership, citizenship, academic skills, and technological skills.

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