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OHS DECA students qualify for international competition; teacher and students present projects
Summary
Members of Odessa High School DECA told the board they qualified for international competition with research projects on AI implementation, event management and business operations; teacher Jessica Wade said seven students qualified and highlighted one student’s three-time qualification record.
Odessa High School DECA advisor Jessica Wade and several DECA students told the Odessa R-VII School Board that multiple students qualified for international competition after success at district and state events.
“Tonight, we’re gonna have members of our DECA program come up and talk. These students have qualified for a[n] international competition,” Jessica Wade said, introducing three of the qualifying students. Wade told the board the chapter has seven students headed to the international level this year; three were available to present at the meeting.
Why it matters: the presentations showed applied learning across marketing, hospitality and event management, and highlighted how a small school competes against larger programs statewide.
Student projects and outcomes - Grace Smith (hospitality and tourism operations research) presented a plan for implementing AI at a downtown Kansas City Mexican restaurant. She said her plan included a SWOT analysis, a budget sized to a small business and objectives and metrics to evaluate the AI rollout. “I created 4 objectives, created a budget that was friendly to the small business… and then had an evaluation of how I was going to measure these as successes,” Smith told the board. - Elle Smith (business services operations research) said she built an initiative called “Move with AI” for a local mover, Gerber Transfer and Storage, covering media, office efficiency, value and expansion; she said her plan included interviews, secondary research and a manageable budget. - Gretchen Kimmel presented a project in event project management that created a Unified Prom event for students with special needs; she said the program invited eight districts and incorporated volunteer supports, a dress event and risk-management planning.
Wade described the competition format: students conduct a research or community-service project, write a 20-page paper and deliver a 15-minute professional presentation at district, state and international levels. She noted that chapter history was being rewritten by multiple qualifiers: “Ella… is the first person in OHS DECA history to ever qualify for ICDC 3 times,” Wade said.
Board feedback Board members and attendees praised students’ communication skills and preparation. One board member said the students’ interpersonal skills will serve them well in the job market and beyond.
Context Wade said the DECA projects require multi-semester research and professional presentations against much larger schools; she said the program’s success reflects sustained student work and advisor support.
