2018 NOVEMBER ISSUE
MOUNTAIN PLAINS NEWSLETTER
T A B L E
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O F
C O N T E N T S
MOUNTAIN PLAINS VP'S MESSAGE
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MEET THE MP COUNCIL
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STATE UPDATES
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LOCAL CHAPTER SPOTLIGHTS
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MEMBERSHIP RECRUITMENT TIPS
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2018-2019 MOUNTAIN PLAINS REGIONAL GOALS
M O U N T A I N P L A I N S N E W S L E T T E R N O V E M B E R I S S U E
Mountain Plains Vice President's Message Hello Mountain Plains Region! My name is Maddy Remington and I’m so excited to be serving you all this year as your 2018-19 Mountain Plains Region Vice President. I'm currently a senior at Central High School in Keller, TX and I began FBLA as an ignorant sophomore, not really understanding the complexity of FBLA until I attended my first FBLA event. My passion for FBLA developed during this year and drove me to run for local chapter Secretary. I enjoyed serving in FBLA so much that at the end of my junior year I ran for the office of President. Serving as local chapter President, I’ve learned a lot of crucial things about FBLA and grew in unimaginable ways. Similarly, serving you as your Mountain Plains Region Vice President, I've have grown an immense respect for this organization and learned so many valuable life skills. I don't believe I would be the person I am today without FBLA and for that I want to thank you all. In addition to FBLA, I also serve as an officer in SkillsUSA and participate in National Honor Society. I’m very involved in my district’s photography and ASL programs as well. I love meeting new people and being able to discuss all sorts of topics, so if you ever see me at a conference feel free to come to chat with me about anything that may be on your mind. I’d also like to add that, along with many of you, I am also a recipient of the America level of the Business Achievement Awards, and the BAAs are something I am very passionate about and I love to advocate for. My favorite FBLA conference is actually a tough decision but, I’d have to say NLC 2017 & 2018. I loved the energy and enthusiasm of all of the members in attendance of both conferences and I also loved getting to meet so many goals oriented, like-minded individuals. These conferences also showed me what FBLA was all about and encouraged me to get more involved in the organization. However, I also hope to have an unforgettable NLC this year in San Antonio with all of you and I hope to see as many of you there as possible! I’m so ecstatic to see the great new heights we will take our region to this year and how each of you will create, lead and inspire in your own communities. With that being said, I’m so proud to introduce the first issue of the Mountain Plains Newsletter. I’d love to hear what you think of this first issue and if you have any ideas for future issues feel free to email me. If you ever have any questions or want to get in touch, I would love to hear from you via email or Instagram as well. I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to display our regions accomplishments this month and I truly could not do it without the support of you, your chapters and the Mountain Plains Region Council. So I urge you to sit back, relax and enjoy the November issue of the Mountain Plains Newsletter!
Madelyn Remington FBLA National Mountain Plains Region Vice President Future Business leaders of America - Phi Beta Lambda Inc. Instagram: @FBLAMPVP | Email: FBLAMPVP@FBLA.ORG | 3
Meet the 2018-19 Mountain Plains Council
drake vorderstrasse, executive assistant Drake Vorderstrasse is a junior from Nebraska currently serving on the Mountain Plains Council as the Executive Assistant. A fun fact about him is that he has double jointed thumbs. His favorite TV show is ‘How I Met Your Mother’ and his favorite FBLA conference was NLC 2017, “Everything seemed so much bigger than life. I was so overwhelmed and I hadn't experienced anything like it before.” He is currently also serving as his local chapter President and Nebraska State Vice President. Drake is additionally in the process of completing the Leader level of his Business Achievement Awards. You can find him on instagram and twitter at @DrakeFBLA
Kaylie Reese, communications co-director Hi! My name is Kaylie Reese and I am the Mountain Plains Region Co-Communications Director. I am a Sophomore at Wellsville High located in Wellsville, Kansas. Some of my accomplishments in FBLA include: Future Level of BAA’s, Community Level of CSA’s, Membership Mania, I hold the position of Editor for my local chapter, and I serve on the Kansas Active Membership Advisory Council. My favorite FBLA conference was NLC 2018 in Baltimore. This conference was my favorite because it was my first national conference. I met so many amazing FBLA members from all over, and I ended up placing 14th in the nation in the Introduction to Business Presentation. For a freshman, it was an incredible experience overall. Some fun facts about me are my favorite TV show is the office, my favorite movie is either Dirty Dancing or To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, and I am the fifth generation of my family to walk the halls of Wellsville High. Feel free to follow me on my Social Media! Twitter-@ReeseKaylie | Instagram- @kayliereesefbla | Facebook- Kaylie Reese
akshay Sharma, communications co-director
My name is Akshay Sharma and I am a Co-Communications Director on the Mountain Plains Regional Council. I am currently a senior at Lincoln East High School in Nebraska. Hands down, my favorite FBLA conference was NLC Anaheim in 10th grade. The California weather was pretty nice (definitely a change from Nebraska), I connected with a lot of members across the nation, and of course, winning in Securities and Investments was pretty cool. Some random/fun facts about me are that my favorite TV show is "The Office" and I really enjoy listening to rap music: so much that I have even written some songs for fun. If you want to get in contact/follow me, my Instagram username is "akshaysharma2019" and my Twitter handle is "akshay_sharma12".
sakshee jain, communications co-director Hello FBLA Members, My name is Sakshee Jain and I am honored to be a Communications Director for the Mountain Plains region. I am a junior from Katy, Texas and this is my third year in FBLA. My affiliation with FBLA actually started out by chance. It just happened that I was passing by the first FBLA meeting, and my friend forced me in and told me to wait for her till it was over. As I sat there in the back, I overheard the advisors talking about Nationals being in Anaheim this year, and that is when I decided that this club might not be a bad idea. And looking back at that day, I actually thank my friend for pushing me to stay because FBLA has helped me more than I can give it credit. It turned a directionless freshman into one that solely wants to pursue business in the future. Other than FBLA I am involved in the psych and debate club at my school. In my free time I enjoy taking instagram worth pictures, binge watching Netflix and hanging out with my friends. I am beyond exited to work with the Mountain Plains council to make this region the best it can possibly be. I am always available to help in any way I can, so please feel free to contact me.
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Meet the 2018-19 Mountain Plains Council
Sadie shriver, membership co-director Hello! My name is Sadie Shriver and I am thrilled to be serving as the 2018-19 Membership Co-Director for the National Mountain Plains Region Council. I am a Junior at Auburn High School in Auburn, Nebraska, serving as my local chapter President. Throughout my time in FBLA I have completed the Future level of the BAA, and the Community level of the CSA. The Fall Leadership Conference is always my favorite conference to attend. You get to catch up with some of the friends you made at NLC, as well as make new ones. You also get to see what your state officer team has been working on, as well as get some fresh, new ideas for managing a local chapter. My favorite TV show is definitely The Office, it’s hilarious. Along with FBLA I am involved in one-act plays, speech team, quiz-bowl, show choir, concert choir, and my school’s spring musical. I can’t wait to create, lead, and inspire this upcoming year!
Kennedy shereck, membership co-director Hi! I am Kennedy Shereck, a junior from North Dakota, and I am very excited to be serving on the National Mountain Plains Region Council as Membership Co-Director! Along with being a part of the Mountain Plains Council, I also currently hold the North Dakota FBLA State Office of Region I Vice President and am in my second term of serving as my local chapter’s President. Throughout my time in FBLA, I have enjoyed each conference I have attended for many different reasons. However, my favorite FBLA conference was the 2017 North Dakota State Leadership Conference. This one is very memorable to me because it was the first conference I had ever attended and was where I was truly exposed to FBLA and the limitless opportunities it has to offer. A couple fun facts about me are that I am a figure skater and my favorite movie series of all time is Harry Potter. It has been a great year so far; I can’t wait to see what the rest of it will bring and how we will all create, lead, and inspire! Instagram: @kshereck_fbla
Vyda Nguyen, Middle Level Liaison
Vyda Nguyen is serving as your 2018-19 Middle Level Liaison. She is currently a Senior at Central High School in Texas. Some fun facts about her are that her favorite show is Sherlock Holmes, her favorite movie is Kill Bill and a random fact is that she can kill bees with a stick. Her favorite FBLA conference was The 2017 National conference in California! “I had the opportunity to create such great memories with my school chapter and was able to meet such brilliant and talented people from all over the United States. That was the first time I’ve ever experienced anything like that conference.” She also holds the Leader level of the Business Achievement Awards and has previously served as her local chapter’s Parliamentarian as well as being a part of the 2017-18 Texas FBLA Reporter-Historian Cabinet. You can find her on Instagram at @vyda.nguyen or on twitter at @vydanguyen.
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The State of the States
Colorado, usa The Colorado FBLA chapter has had a wonderful start to the 2018-2019 FBLA Year. After the National Leadership Conference, the State Officer Team quickly went to work planning the FBLA year. On July 15th, the newly-elected state officers gathered in Breckenridge to meet with other CTSOs (FBLA-PBL, DECA, FCCLA, HOSA, SkillsUSA, TSA, and FFA) to help out with the Colorado Association for Career and Technical Education conference, gain helpful skills to bring back to our respective state and local chapters, and begin planning the year for our members. To start off the school year, Colorado FBLA hosted the CTSO Leadership Kickoff on August 29th. For the first year of its implementation, the Colorado Career and Technical Student Organizations of FBLA, FCCLA, and HOSA were fortunate to experience a turnout from 40 high schools and 242 members. The FBLA State Officer team presented outdoor workshops along with leading whole-group activities surrounding BAAs, CSAs, PEAK Awards, Communication, Professionalism, Marketing, and Conference/Competition Prep. An assortment of members and officers from three organizations all attended the workshops and learned helpful tips and skills to bring back to their chapters in preparation for the year. Colorado FBLA’s headlined fall event was the Colorado FBLA Fall Leadership Conference held in Vail from October 22-23. A familiar territory for Colorado FBLA, members had the opportunity to return to Vail in outstanding efforts to compete, learn, and lead others into the exciting 2018-2019 FBLA year. The first-of-its-kind conference allowed members to showcase their knowledge and competitive edge in mock-tests, have the opportunity to attend workshops held by their Colorado FBLA State Officers, learn about college and career opportunities, and gain lifelong business skills. Members and advisers from 30 Colorado FBLA Chapters, totaling over 300 in attendance, spanning from all corners of the state attended the exciting conference. Members dove into insightful Leadership Seminars given by workshop presenters as well as have the opportunity to hear from the University of Northern Colorado’s Monfort College of Business, Colorado University’s Leeds School of Business, the United States Navy, FBLA’s official non-profit organization March of Dimes, as well as attend workshops held by the State Officers presenting on various areas of FBLA. Both a competitive and helpful atmosphere provided members the experience of a competitive testing event while educating new members on the basics of FBLA tests in the mock-testing competition as well. However most noteworthy of the conference came from the combination of fleece, scissors, and good hearts for the community service project in which members participated. Headlined by the sound of fleece trimming, hands tying, laughter aplenty and singing members serving with all their hearts, students exemplified the Service pillar of the Future Business Leaders of America organization. Including blankets of size big and small, fabric soft and heavy, and patterns vivid and calm, the total number of blankets hand-cut and tied by students reached 120 in total. The best part: all 120 blankets were delivered after the conference to the Children's Hospital Colorado. The fleece blankets, which will be given to babies of premature birth, were part of the service project Fleece for Fighters; an exemplary display of service to the community from the mountaintops of FBLA. The Colorado Future Business Leaders of America exemplified Creating, Leading, and Inspiring members across the state in Inspiring to Innovate through our many events held in the fall. The State Officer Team has worked hard to bring the best-of-the best to members so far, and we cannot wait to see all that our amazing members accomplish throughout the year! Written by: Bryson Becker, Colorado FBLA State Reporter
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The State of the States
kansas, usa Kansas FBLA Accomplishments By Sean Roberts, Kansas Public Relations Officer Kansas FBLA’s list of achievements started long before the new school year began. This year, Kansas FBLA sent many members to compete in Baltimore, Maryland at the 2018 National Leadership Conference. The conference concluded with 20 individuals/teams from Kansas placing in the top ten of their respective events. The Kansas FBLA Officer team utilized the information they gained from NLC to help in presenting workshops to Kansas FBLA members at our annual Summer Leadership Seminar held in Lawrence. The workshops received amazing feedback from members and advisers about the information presented, the presentations themselves and the professionalism of the officers. Though we are only a quarter of the way into the school year, Kansas FBLA has compiled a list of accomplishments. We have selected our Active Membership Advisory Council,which helps our State Executive Board carry out its goals. Positions on the council are determined through an application process. We are also excited about having Kansas FBLA member, Kaylie Reese, being selected as one of the Cocommunication Directors for the FBLA Mountain Plains Region.The Kansas FBLA State Executive Board has also contacted and secured many corporate sponsorships for the Kansas FBLA State Leadership Conference, but they are still contacting many new businesses to help support Kansas FBLA State winners.Kansas FBLA also has worked to celebrate the successes of its local chapters, awardingthe Chapter of the Month title to the chapters of Rock Hill (August) and Wellsville (September) so far. The Kansas SEB is also working on a new project for the upcoming 2019 competitive year. We have noticed a trend of talented and motivated leaders qualifying for Nationals, but some lack the resources to travel to nationals to compete. We have created a new scholarship that awards one individual competitor funds to help defray the cost of travel and lodging when competing at nationals. This scholarship fund is being generated through several FBLA activities.Overall, Kansas FBLA has completed a great deal already, but we are just getting started. Our Kansa FBLA State Officer team continues to be amazed by the accomplishments ofour local chapters, and we are excited to continue leading them towards a more successful future
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The State of the States
Nebraska, usa In late September, Nebraska FBLA kicked off the Fall Leadership Conference with 395 members in attendance at the Kearney location and 658 at the Omaha location. Throughout the conference, members attended insightful workshops from the State Officer Team and their chapters, discovered innovative careers from business professionals, and heard from an inspiring keynote speaker, Bill Cordes. In October, the state officers also selected the year’s first Member of the Month. Last year, Nebraska FBLA state officers implemented the Member of the Month program to recognize outstanding. Applications opened for the Nebraska FBLA Executive Committees, a brand-new leadership opportunity for members to work alongside the State Officer Team and promote the benefits of FBLA.
South Dakota, usa Hi guys! South Dakota just had our Fall Leadership Conference. It was held on Monday October 15 in Sioux Falls at Augustana College. We had a trainer from FOCUS come and talk to us. We also did team and personal building activities. I think everyone left the training with something to take back to their chapters! On the state side of things, we are working on our Program of Work. Part of that was to increase membership and two schools want to start chapters so we will be working with them as well. Now we are planning for our Officer Leadership Institute. That should be really fun this year! That is about all that is going on in South Dakota! Written By: Elise Heesch, South Dakota FBLA State President
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The State of the States
North Dakota, usa North Dakota FBLA started out this fall with a state officer meeting in September to readjust the state’s plan of work and to work on the workshops that we presented at our Fall Leadership Conference. Our ten State Officers split into two groups and ran workshops for local officer teams at Fall Leadership Conference, so we used this time to collaborate and work on the schedule for the conference as well. So far, the officer team has posted three YouTube videos to inform members more about certain aspects of FBLA. The August video was a welcome done by our State President Savanna Friedt and contained information for the year and information about Fall Leadership Conference and National Fall Leadership Conference. The September video by Jeneca Kostad, our State Treasurer, is all about Business Achievement Awards, Community Service Awards, and the new LEAD program for Middle Level. October’s video by Chloe Gunderson, the ND FBLA Region II Vice President, is information for the members on how to recruit for the Professional Division. These videos are a big way for us to reach our members without seeing them in person to tell them how some of our programs work. Another way we are reaching our members is through our Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter accounts. We have stayed very active and have posted very regularly about holidays, deadlines, new information, and what our officer team is up to! North Dakota FBLA’s Fall Leadership Conference was on October 7th and 8th. Over these two days, we had guest speaker Patty Hendrickson speak to our chapter officers and advisers, over four hundred fifty in attendance, about how they can make you the best version of yourself and how to lead in different leadership styles to reach different groups of people. We also had workshops on teambuilding activities and the basics of FBLA. At FLC we recognized all of the members that placed at nationals as well. We held a fundraiser for March of Dimes that we called March of Babies. To carry out this fundraiser, we had tickets and purple accessories for sale during the conference and had jars with officer names. The two officers with the most tickets in their jars dressed up like babies during our entertainment for the night. During this fundraiser, North Dakota FBLA raised over $450 dollars for the March of Dimes organization. One of our own members from the Minot Chapter shared with us her story about how important the March of Dimes had been for her family. We also had a few other guests in attendance that showed the amazing legacy that North Dakota FBLA has. We had previous State Director Jerry Lydeen come as well as Iris Swedlund, our past region adviser. North Dakota also has a state officer that was elected to the Mountain Plains Region Executive Council. Kennedy Schereck, our Region I Vice President, is now helping out our Mountain Plains Region Vice President Maddie Remington as one of the 2018-2019 Membership Directors! North Dakota has the year off to a great start, as we have started a new chapter in Bowbells, ND, and they attended the Fall Conference! We are also looking at reactivating a few new chapters and hope to keep the year rolling with new ideas to help get our current members and chapters more involved! Our most recent work as a state officer team has been to obtain corporate sponsors for each event at the State Leadership Conference. Our leadership team has covered over six events to be paid for to help the members that win those events go to nationals. North Dakota FBLA is sending a few chapters to NFLC in Chicago, IL and can’t wait to see what they take away from the conference! Our State Officer team is very excited to start planning for our state conference and accomplish more of the goals in our Program of Work.
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The State of the States
texas, usa Greetings fellow Mountain Plains region states! This is one Texas’ state officers here to bring you some updates of our state. For those who don’t know who I am, my name is Kyra Rose and I currently serve as the Reporter Historian for Texas. I am also responsible for my own newsletter called The Texan. Now onward to the updates! The next thing on several of our officers To Do list is area workshops and the National fall Leadership Conference. We congratulate the following officers for successfully conducting their area workshops in the October month: Jackson Hisel (area 1 VP), Natasha Reyes (area 2 VP), Corbin Lubianski (area 4 VP), and Matthew Armstrong (area 6 VP)! They worked extremely hard to put on their prospective area’s workshop and provide the best learning experience for their attendees. We are very proud of our officers! We also wish the best of luck to area 3 VP, Elena Gil, area 5 VP, Prachi Shah, and area 7 Vp, Corinne McDuff for their area workshops are upcoming in the November month! If you reside in the area’s of these amazing VP’s, I hope you have a great time at their area workshops! NFLC is just a little ways away, area you guys excited? I know our officers are! Our officers will be attending the NFLC in Charlotte, North Carolina. Will you be there? Well, if you will be you can expect to see Quyen Nguyen, our state president, Isabel Chapa, our state parliamentarian, Natasha Reyes, Elena Gil, Corbin Lubianski, and Matthew Armstrong in attendance and they hope to see you! Sadly our officers Alice Wang, our state secretary, Jackson Hisel, Prachi Shah, and I will not be in attendance (*cue sad face emoji*). Although we will not be able to participate in the festivities, we do wish our officers who will be and all the other states in the Mountain Plains region safe travels and much fun! Last on our To Do list is mid - year planning where our officers will spend 3 days in Houston, Texas planning the best SLC we can for our fellow Texas FBLA residents! We are so excited to finally announce our SLC theme of.....well you just going to have to tune in to our Texas FBLA social media to find out! Go follow our instagram, twitter, and add our snapchat (all under @texas_fbla)! Until next time Mountain Plains region! Sincerely, Texas State Reporter Historian, Kyra Rose
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Local Chapters in the Spotlight
Palisade FBLA, CO “Leads to Empower” Four FBLA members worked on setting up Penny Wars for the school. They did Penny Wars to help with March of Dimes. They spread the news for what March of Dimes was for throughout the process of the event. The four students involved with FBLA implicated the whole school during homecoming week while there was lots of fun activities. The funds raised throughout Penny Wars were donated to the March of Dimes fundraiser at the end of the homecoming week. On October 30th, Five Palisade FBLA members will also be hosting Trick or Treat Street at Palisade High School, 3679 G Rd in Palisade. There will be interactive games, candy, and fun family bonding moments. So bring your children, grandchildren, or little siblings on by and have a fun and eventful night!
Rock Hills FBLA, ks Rock Hills FBLA, located in north central Kansas—just about 20 miles from the geographic center of the “lower 48 states,” is a small school with about 70 students in grades 912. This year’s FBLA membership is 21, so roughly 30 percent of the student body belongs to FBLA. We also have 15 professional members this year—four of them are life-time members. The other CTSO in the school is FFA. Most FBLA members are also FFA members as well as student athletes so our chapter often collaborates with the FFA chapter on community service projects. Rock Hills is the only school in Jewell County, Kansas, which has a population of just over 3,000; the major industry is agriculture, and the largest employer in the county is the school district (right around 750 square miles). The chapter really tries to ensure that we follow the three words found on the crest: service, education, and progress. Specific service projects for the 2018-2019 school year include hosting an alumni breakfast; working two shifts at the Jewell County Fair food stand; cleaning a 2-mile stretch of Highway 36; obtaining a Roots and Shoots grant to create “new baby” baskets for the Jewell County Health Department; helping with children’s games at the annual Jewell Corn Show; March of Dimes fundraising; helping with and providing money for Santa’s Workshop; having a “trunk” at the Mankato Chamber of Commerce’s annual “Trunk or Treat”; and updating the school’s CTE trophy case. An annual favorite for chapter members is the planning, organizing, and execution of the county’s annual Veterans Day Program. Members are encouraged to show progress by completing business achievement awards as well as the community service awards. Two chapter members have reached the 200+ hour mark and one of those seems to be well on his way to earning the 500+ hour recognition. Our chapter has been recognized as the second overall Kansas outstanding chapter for the last three years; and our chapter has received the Chapter Challenge award; national outstanding chapter award; and national gold seal chapter designation for the past several years. Our chapter also partners with various organizations in the community, including the Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary on a POW/MIA Day “missing man” table ceremony and the Veterans Day program. This year we are also partnering with the Jewell County Health Department as well as the FFA chapter on a literacy project. Education is obviously a cornerstone of any CTSO, and Rock Hills FBLA is no different. Members gain knowledge, learn new skills, and utilize information learned in business classes as they prepare for competitive events. Job shadowing, business tours, and career fairs are also a part of our FBLA year. Additionally, our chapter tries to participate in as many of the national programs as we can, and FBLA Week is always fun with activities throughout the week. . Officers elected in the spring have two or three work days during the summer and try to plan a Program of Work that will meet the nine goals of FBLA as well as emphasize service, education, and progress. Each semester, members select which committees they want to be on so that they can become an integral part of the group. Normally, there are between 90 and 95 percent of the chapter members participating in an event. Of course, any organization needs money, and our $4,000 annual budget (not including NLC costs) means a lot of fundraising. Our chapter earns money by selling holiday greenery; working a lot of concession stands; and hosting dinners. Planning and organizing skills are definitely learned as the various fundraising activities are completed. Our chapter is gaining a reputation for quality organization and execution. Other organizations are starting to contact us asking us to serve a meal at their events. At the 2018 State Leadership Conference, 10 of the 19 members participating at state made it onto stage. It was really great to see three of our seniors take top honors: 1st in Mr. Future Business Leader; 3rd in Ms. Future Business Leader; and 1st in Job Interview. At the national level, three of the ten members attending made it onto stage—3rd in Job Interview and 7th in Banking & Financial Systems. Members are encouraged to take a variety of business classes so that we can do well in various events. Overall, it takes a lot of dedication and work to make our FBLA chapter strong. When members, officers, and the adviser work together to make things happen, our chapter is strong and vibrant.
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Local Chapters in the Spotlight
Dorchester FBLA, ne
INTRODUCTION FBLA is based on three main pillars: service, education, and progress. Everything that we plan at Dorchester FBLA, is based off of those key topics. We believe that in order to strive to be successful in the work that we do, we need to take these three terms into consideration. Our chapter believes that community service is very important. Being able to have the opportunity to help out around the community and make a difference, is an amazing accomplishment. Our community supports our chapter in various ways, this is the least we could do. At our school, FBLA has the highest number of student involvement. We have 47 members of in our FBLA chapter, and our school enrollment is 62. From our recruitment efforts and high participation, we have received local and national recognition in Market Share. Some of our main contributions through community service are local blood drives, cancer awareness week, and morning with santa. In addition, one of our most successful chapter fundraisers was Donkey Basketball. BLOOD DRIVE One of our most successful projects that we do as a chapter that we feel benefits that community the most, are the local blood drives. At our school, we partner with the American Red Cross and the Nebraska Community Blood Bank to give blood in our community. Our chapter has been working with these two blood banks for a few years, now. This year, our chapter has decided to hold a blood drive every eight-ten weeks. This allows our blood donors to maximize their donations each year, without leaving the community. Last year, we received scholarship money from the donations through the Blood Bank and American Red Cross initiative programs. Each of our seniors received scholarship money. We are a premier partner with American Red Cross. CANCER AWARENESS In the month of October, our chapter raises money to remember and celebrate those who have or have had cancer in the past. Our goal is to raise money to donate to a cancer charity or a member in the community affected by cancer. Last year, we designed ‘Pink Out’ shirts to help raise additional funds. In order for us to make this successful, we design shirts to sell to the community. We host an annual pink out volleyball game, and invite other teams to participate, too. Community members wear the shirt to that game. In addition, we created a poster which is where we put up cancer ribbons. We sells these ribbons at a starting price of $1. The ribbons are sold to support the fighters, admire the survivors, and honor the fallen. Anyone is able to donate and put up a ribbon to help out our cause. Last year, we raised over $400. We were able to give this money to the American Cancer Society. MORNING WITH SANTA Every year, around Christmas time, our FBLA members work with our Fire Department and host Morning with Santa. This activity takes place at the community building downtown. In the morning, kids are able to have a ‘meet and greet’ with Santa, and sit on his lap. After that, we have arts and crafts set out for them to draw and make Christmas pictures, projects, and letters. We also have a station where the kids can decorate sugar cookies. A community member makes the cookies, then the children decorate their cookies with frosting and sprinkles. The kids love and enjoy doing this and getting to work with the FBLA members for this activity. DONKEY BASKETBALL One of our community’s new favorite activity is Donkey Basketball. Last year, our chapter decided to hold this event at our school. For the introduction of this event to our school, it was our greatest and most successful event. This event was ran to help raise money for our national qualifiers for the 2018 National Leadership Conference in Baltimore, Maryland. For this event, we had over 600+ people in attendance in a community that has a population of 615 residents. Along with this, we also did a hot beef sundae feed, where we served hot beef, potatoes, drinks, and desserts. We were able to raise over $3000 for this event. The benefited our five national qualifiers. We had four teams for the event: Teachers, FBLA members, Alumni, and Community Members. All the teams had a great time, and in-between games, youth attendees were given donkey rides. Our community is already ready for our second event.
Divide county FBLA, nd “Divide County FBLA Members Contribute to the Community” Divide County FBLA members are committed to service, education, and progress. Some of the service activities they have participated in include: Annual City Wide Clean Up, Pheasants Forever Banquet, Volleyball and Football Concessions, March of Dimes, Cancer Awareness, Fundraising for community members in need of financial assistance due to medical reasons, Organ Donation Awareness and Importance of Insurance Chapter members also participate in the Business Achievement Levels in which they are required to complete to attend the North Dakota State Leadership Conference. First year members are required to complete the Future Level; second year members are required to complete the Business Level; third year members are required to complete the required activities of the Leader Level; fourth year members are required to complete the Leader Level; and fifth year members are required to complete eight America Level Activities, which leads some of them to completing the America Level. The BAA’s have become requirements for members because of their focus on community service and leadership. Members are beginning to record more of their volunteer hours through the Community Service Awards Program. The DC chapter focuses on raising awareness and funds for the March of Dimes. A community member who has experienced a premature birth is brought in to speak to the student body, and presentations have been given on the importance of research to make sure babies born prematurely have a fighting chance. Several fundraisers are held throughout the fall season to fund this important organization. Some of the fundraising activities include 50/50 drawings at sporting events, selling of purple feet in our annual, “Race for Babies” campaign, and an adult and student Dodgeball Tournament. A majority of the members are also involved in the North Dakota Stock Market Game, LifeSmarts, and the Virtual Business Challenges. These are not required for members to be involved in, however, they are strongly encouraged
Local Chapters in the Spotlight
Mitchell FBLA, sd
Mitchell FBLA Chapter Excels in Volunteer Service Projects Mitchell, South Dakota Mitchell, SD. ̶ Mitchell's FBLA chapter has been involved in various service projects throughout the months of August, September, and October. On September 25th, 2018, Mitchell FBLA held their first "Interest Fair." The “Interest Fair” took place during homecoming week and was an idea created by Mitchell's chapter treasurer and the South Dakota state historian, Liz Fossum. This fair gathers all of the different clubs/groups in the school, each with their own booth, so that all students can talk to a person from the club to learn more about that specific activity. The first Interest Fair was a success and they hope that it becomes an annual event. Fossum said, “Every group I talked to had new members sign up. It benefited everyone involved.” Their next project took place on October 19th, 2018, and not only involved their school, but their whole community. For over 10 years, Mitchell FBLA has teamed up with the Kernel Volleyball team to host an event called Dig Pink. On Dig Pink night, FBLA puts on a silent auction featuring donated items from their chapter and from local businesses. The Kernel Volleyball team always donates a custom designed volleyball, made by the team, featuring each player’s signature. The proceeds from the auction go to a member(s) of the community. This year, the money was granted to Mrs. Bahe, a former Mitchell High School science teacher who is battling breast cancer. “The event this year has been our most successful auction in FBLA history. We raised $1,170. It’s great to see high school students and community members coming together to fight cancer,” said Caleb Jarding, Mitchell’s chapter Vice President and head of the Dig Pink Committee. The last project Mitchell FBLA has hosted thus far took place on October 31st, Halloween night. On this night, 5 groups assembled and competed in collecting food for the Mitchell Food Pantry. At the end of the night, the combined total of food items amounted to 635 cans. Trick-or-Treat for canned goods, the name of the event, was a highly successful event adding to Mitchell FBLA’s recent increase in community service. So what’s next for their chapter? Two officers from Mitchell FBLA, Sara VanErdewyk and Caleb Jarding, are organizing an event aimed to educate high school students in practicing successful business tactics. The event will involve two local business CEO’s and will include projects for young students interested in pursuing a career as a business professional. They hope that this event will be a success.
seven lakes FBLA, tx
It has been fourteen years since FBLA started at Seven Lakes High School. Since then, the chapter has grown immensely in membership, participation, and involvement at the district and state level. With the support of our advisors Clark Saunders, Sheila Abel, and Carla Jones, the number of students attending district, state and national competitions continues to increase. Numerous local chapter officers from Seven Lakes have won state and district elections. Furthermore, our fundraising and community service efforts have continued to improve throughout the years. It is with these achievements in mind, the Seven Lakes FBLA chapter continues to strive for greatness in its fourteenth year. Currently, the Seven Lakes chapter has 167 members as of the 2018-2019 school year. Of the numerous organizations at Seven Lakes High School, the FBLA chapter is the second largest in terms of membership. After the devastating Hurricane Harvey flooding hit Houston, Texas, Seven Lakes FBLA decided to hold a community wide service project to help the flood victims. Seven Lakes FBLA organized a canned food drive in cooperation with the Interact club, a school community service club. Together, FBLA and Interact collected an astounding 1,111 cans of food and donated all cans to Houston’s Kids Meals on Wheel. As a chapter, Seven Lakes is recognized as the second largest chapter in the Mountain Plains region. Several students also received individual national recognition at the FBLA Awards of Excellence Ceremony on July 1st, with 7 students who placed in the top 10 in their event: * Karthick Arunachalam was the national runner-up in the Impromptu Speaking event., * Michael Yu, Utkarsh Singh, and Vineet Paidisetty, competed collaboratively in E-business and placed 6th., * Ananya Dahl placed sixth in Introduction to Business Procedures., * Sonia Abraham placed 5th in Community Service Project., * Siya Patel placed 5th in Publication Design. Going into the new year, Seven Lakes FBLA is looking forward to reaching even greater heights. We hope to allow our members to gain a greater insight into the ever expanding business world and learn skills of leadership that could be reapplied to any field that they may pursue. Our chapter is excited to continue our record of success and aspires to achieve greater goals in the future!
lander valley FBLA, wy Membership in LVHS FBLA comes along with a plethora of character developing experiences. It involves first hand observations of business procedures, as well as hands on participation in volunteer opportunities. The LVHS Chapter of FBLA organizes a Fall Business Trip during which members and officers travel to Denver, Colorado to see larger businesses operating first hand. This trip helps our club learn leadership and organizational skills that we bring back to Lander to use towards bettering our school and larger community. We immediately get to use these skills in the Turkey Basket service project. The basic aim of Turkey Basket is to collect nonperishable food items that can be easily assembled into Thanksgiving dinners and then give those collections of foods to families who otherwise could not afford a holiday meal. The process of basket assembly starts with chapter members wrapping and taping donated cardboard boxes. Then, members and officers spread the word about our project and each homeroom class competes to see who can bring in the most food items. The winning class usually receives donuts, courtesy of LVHS FBLA. The part of the process that I think is the most enjoyable is the Scavenger Hunt. On a night in November, FBLA partners with FFA to go door to door and ask community members to donate food for baskets. In addition to accomplishing a constructive goal, this night is an opportunity for students to make memories and form bonds with their peers. The final step in making Turkey Baskets is the sorting of all of the food into boxes to give to families. FBLA officers work all day and members take shifts to make sure the appropriate amounts of food get into the boxes. Although we don’t get to give out the boxes ourselves because of privacy reasons, it’s incredibly fulfilling to put together something like that for our community. For the Coat Drive, FBLA members partner with our local Kiwanis and Key Club to collect jackets and other outerwear. These items are then donated to students in Fremont County School District 1 who don’t have adequate winter clothes. Our final outreach project involves partnering with local businesses to put on the “Light Up Lander” event. LVHS members help organize a parade and various holiday themed activities for the community to participate in while the Main Street of the town is decorated with Christmas lights. None of our projects would be possible without the participation of our entire chapter and the support we receive from our school community. In order to have the positive impact that we do, every member of our club contributes something. The educational and volunteer experiences that we participate in help to create a productive atmosphere within our chapter and teach our members about hard work. Our club members take pride in what we as a chapter accomplish, we love to inspire the people around us and help build a greater community at LVHS. Mirielle Cox 2018-19 LVHS FBLA Reporter 2018-19 LVHS Student Council Junior Class Representative 13 Photos courtesy of Alexis Fontaine LVHS 2018-2019 Historian
Today's Tips: Membership Recruitment Advertise, advertise, advertise! Try to put up posters everywhere in your school and even utilize you school's announcements to recruit members and educate the student body about the benefits & opportunities of FBLA.
Host FBLA Events
A good way to get people interested and talking about FBLA is by having many events throughout the year. The members who attend these events will post on social media and talk tot heir friends about how fun FBLA is and this will in turn grow your membership. Also utilize posters to advertise for your events and get people interested. This will also be a good way for members to get involved and help them make friends which will help your retention rate as well.
Utilize social media
Almost every teenager is on FBLA these days, so use this to your advantage. Try making an account on Instagram, Twitter or even Facebook for your chapter. Have your members tag your account when they got to different FBLA functions so people will start to recognize the FBLA name. Post about the different community service projects, outings and conferences your chapter attends and overall just have fun with it!
Talk to freshman
have your members and officers reach out to freshman and speak with them about the purpose of FBLA. a Freshman hearing about an amazing club from an upperclassman or an older peer can help immensely in getting people interested in FBLA and growing your membership.
set up a FBLA boothÂ
Try setting up a FBLA booth during your schools lunches or even at school events. This will give students an opportunity to see what FBLA is all about and hear about it from a member's perspective. This will help encourage underclassman as well as upperclassmen to join if the FBLA presence in your school is very prevalent. This is also a more effective method for recruitment as students will hear about it from an actual person, instead of just reading about it on posters or social media. 14
2018-19 MOUNTAIN PLAINS REGIONAL GOALS Connect the Region
Increase Membership
Increase legislative Involvement 15
THANK YOU FOR READING! WE ARE SO EXCITED TO SHARE REGIONAL NEWS WITH YOU! STAY TUNED FOR MORE ISSUES COMING SOON! if you would like your chapter to be potentially featured as the next chapter spotlight or you would like images of your chapter to be featured in future issues, email fblampvp@fbla.org for more information.
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