Students from several Rutherford County high schools traveled to Chattanooga in March to compete at the state DECA conference.
DECA is an organization that “prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality and management in high schools and colleges around the globe.”
We asked the teacher sponsors to send us the list of their students who competed, results from those who placed, and photos of the students.
Blackman High School
- Participants: Zachary Taylor, Charleigh Ann Catron, Madelyn Patton, Patrick Falcone, Osamede Uzzi, Langston Thaxton, Irvin “McClain” Turner, Carmen “Kit” Temple, Albany Rubio, Preston Street, Leah Bailey, Heliban Patel
Central Magnet School
24 Nationals Qualifiers:
- Sana Kattih — 3rd place — Apparel and Accessories Marketing
- Anirudh Kodukula — 2nd place — Business Finance
- Willa Cook and Ashtyn Patterson — 5th place — Buying and Merchandising Team Decision-Making
- Evan Gibson, Austin Schaffrath and Azaria Sileshi — 5th place — Finance Operations Research
- Breanna Gonzalez — 3rd place — Financial Consulting Event
- Noah Koenig — 2nd place — Hospitality and Tourism Professional Selling
- Charles Maynard — 6th place — Human Resources Management
- Anshuman Amraotikar, Aditya Dwivedi and Karunya Vudattula — 3rd place — Innovation Plan
- Kaitlyn Elliott and Madelyn Gaunt — 2nd place — Integrated Marketing Campaign Event
- Kamila Kamili, Patricia Le and Cindy Yang-3rd place — Integrated Marketing Campaign Service
- Liya Beyene — 3rd place — Principles of Business Administration/Management
- Dexter Trageser — 1st place — Principles of Marketing
- Audrey Dewey — 3rd place — Principles of Marketing
- Ginny Knox — 4th place — Retail Merchandising
- Jackson Foster and Jace Traughber — 2nd place — Sports and Marketing Team Decision-Making
Eagleville School
- Sarah Marshall — 1st Place — Role Play Apparel and Accessories
- Cade Taylor — 1st Place — Role Play Accounting
Holloway High School
- “Holloway didn’t place but learned a lot,” teacher sponsor Dawn Powell.
LaVergne High School
- Kelvin Ojiego & Angel Delarosa — 1st place — Business Law & Ethics Team
Oakland High School
Placed in the top 5:
- Sophie James — Automotive Services Marketing Services
- Dylan Montealegre — Automotive Services Marketing Services
- Nathan Ross — Entrepreneurship Series
- Haley Patel and Nancy Zaher — Entrepreneurship Team Decision Making
- Ben Childs and Peyton Harrington — Sports and Entertainment Marketing Team Decision Making
- Evelyn Schmahl — Professional Selling Event
Placed in Individual awards:
- Ashlyn Huddleston: Role Play Principles of Business Management and Administration
- Cullen Surles: Role Play Quick Service Restaurant Management Series
Riverdale High School
The following students placed in the top 10:
- Josiah Davenport, Cooper Moore, and Justin Price — Sports and Entertainment Operations Research 6th in the state
- Bryston Greene and Alexys Williams — Community Awareness Project 7th in the state
- Will Rankin and Weston Wright — Finance Operations Research 10th in the state
- Gray Turek and Jack Vaughn qualified for nationals with a gold-recertification for our School Based Enterprise (SBE)
Rockvale High School
- Paxton Holder — VP of Leadership for 2024-2025 TN DECA
- Lilliana Cornwell and Jayson Gallardo — Made Nationals in the Sales Project Team Written Event
Smyrna High School
- “Smyrna had 37 competitors this year!” Teacher sponsor Ann Horton.
Stewarts Creek High School
Students that achieved top 3 in the state of Tennessee:
- Aaron Dessie — 1st Place — Restaurant and Food Service Management Series Role-Play
- Landon Ruckstuhl and Peyton Sneed — 1st Place — Integrated Marketing Campaign
- Sierra Brown and Collina Lan — 1st Place — International Business Plan
- Amare Bellamy — 2nd Place — Principles of Finance Role-Play
- Parker Mathis 3rd Place — Accounting Applications Series Role-Play
- Lauren Coltharp and Macey Yorks 3rd Place — Hospitality and Tourism Operations Research
Additional Nationals Qualifiers in the top 10 in the state of Tennessee:
- Aidan Martin and Jael Miller 4th Place — Finance Operations Research
- Kenneth Inthirakod, Kosorachi Onyekwere, and Abel Wondehosen 5th Place — Sports and Entertainment Marketing Operations Research
- Bennett Baldwin and Shelby Mangrum 6th Place — Entrepreneurship Team Decision Making Team Role-Play
