Caledonia students earn recognition at BPA Conference

Thirty-two students from Caledonia High School participated in the annual Minnesota Business Professionals of America (BPA) State Leadership Conference held March 14-16 at the Minneapolis Hyatt Regency. 

It was a record-breaking year for the Minnesota BPA; over 1,200 students from across the state gathered for the three-day conference held in Minneapolis, with over 1,100 competing. 

During the school year, 1,800 Minnesota BPA student members took part in the organization’s competitive events program, allowing them to compete in nearly 70 events focused in the areas of finance, business administration, management information systems, digital communication & design, and management, marketing & communication. The competitions prepare students to succeed and assess real-world business skills and problem-solving abilities. After qualifying earlier this year, regional winners put their talents to the test during the State Leadership Conference.

Students receiving state recognition include:

Alijah Marschall – Network Administration Using Cisco – 2nd (NLC Eligible)

Faith McAllister – MS - Graphic Design Promotion – 1st (NLC Eligible)

Faith McAllister – MS - Extemporaneous Speech – 1st (NLC Eligible)

Faith McAllister – MS - Business Communication Skills Concepts - Open – 2nd (NLC Eligible)

Jesse Stoltz – Device Configuration and Troubleshooting – 4th (NLC Eligible)

Jesse Stoltz – Linux Operating System Fundamentals – 3rd (NLC Eligible)

Grace McAllister - HS Extemporaneous Speech - 4th Place (NLC Eligible)

Laurent Stigeler - Meeting and Event Planning Concepts - 4th Place (NLC Eligible)

Laurent Stigeler - Economic Research Individual - 5th Place

Computer Security - Samantha Yarbrough - 8th place

Advanced Interview - Grace Stefanidis - 8th Place

This May, Alijah Marschall, Jesse Stoltz, Grace McAllister, and Faith McAllister will compete with thousands of top students from across the United States at the 59th Annual National Leadership Conference (NLC) – the pinnacle of BPA competition. Members will travel to Chicago, IL in May.

In addition to the competitive events, Caledonia’s Vice President Noah Berger ran to become a member of the State Leadership Team. Throughout the conference Noah participated in caucasus, spoke in front of the entire conference assembly and stumped for votes in a rally.

After completing an interview and a skills test, Berger was elected to the position of Vice President of Membership Outreach.

ABOUT MINNESOTA BPA:

Business Professionals of America is the leading Career and Technical Student Organization for high school students pursuing careers in business management, office administration, information technology, and other related career fields. Business Professionals of America's mission is to contribute to preparing a world-class workforce through advancing leadership, citizenship, and academic and technological skills. BPA enhances the preparation for college and careers by providing co-curricular programs that integrate into classroom instruction, apply learning, connect to business, and promote competition.

The Minnesota Secondary Association is part of a larger organization comprised of over 50,000 members from 23 United States and Puerto Rico. For more information about Minnesota BPA, please visit www.mnbpa.org.

Caledonia’s BPA Chapter continues its fundraising efforts until the end of the year. Coming up on April 28th is the BPA annual Waffle Breakfast. Tickets are on sale now and will be available at the door. Serving will be from 9 to Noon at Caledonia High School. The BPA chapter will also be running the concession stand for home baseball and softball games this season.

Any individual or business who is interested in sponsoring our students as they travel to Chicago to compete at the National Level can send a check to the Caledonia BPA Chapter, Attention: Teri Larson, Advisor Caledonia High School, 825 North Warrior Avenue, Caledonia, MN 55921.