Forty-one Wenatchee High School DECA students qualified for the State Career Development Conference by placing at least in the top four of their event at the DECA Area 10 Competition in the Yakima Convention Center on Jan. 16.

More than 450 students from 12 high schools competed at the event, including 59 from WHS. Out of the 27 events held, Wenatchee earned 16 first-place honors, six seconds, nine thirds, and two fourths.

Students who qualified for State by placing first:

Sophomore Alexis Rodriguez (Accounting Applications), senior Jacob Busse (Automotive Services), sophomore Abby Davidson (Food Marketing), senior Katie Jagla (Hotel and Lodging), sophomore Mary Smith (Human Resource Management), sophomore Max Valderrama (Marketing Management), freshman Vivian Noyd (Quick Service Restaurant Management), senior Erika Drollinger (Restaurant & Food Service Management), senior Carie Graves (Retail Merchandising), juniors Miles Letts-Brandt and Wallace O’Donnell (Business Law and Ethics), seniors Madi Dalbeck and Roslyn Thompson (Marketing Communications), seniors Kris Garrett and Max Schneider (Travel and Tourism), sophomore Austin Boese (Advertising Campaign), senior Abel Sixto (Hospitality and Tourism Professional Selling), sophomore Blake Ansley ( Professional Selling), senior Jacob Ashbrooks, seniors John Malmin and Jose Sanchez ( Sports and Entertainment Promotion Plan).

Second, third, and fourth qualifiers are: freshman Drew Pomeroy, senior Samantha Visscher, junior Patricio Alvarez, senior Nikara Morgan, senior Catherine Ross, sophomore Alex Haugan, sophomore Kori Martin, junior Angel Guzman, senior Tyler Miller, junior Amira Chandler, junior Chris Trussel, sophomores Edan Patterson and Olesya Plukchi, freshman Patrick Tilly and Trever Wyles, senior Gustavo Navarro, senior Eddie Castorena, freshman Bryce Peters and seniors Drake Holliday and Mike Jones.

Additionally, Martin won Washington State Area 10 President for the 2014-2015 school year. This is the seventh year in a row that a WHS student has held the Area 10 President position.
State competition will take place on March 6-8 at the Bellevue Convention Center. They will compete with over 3,500 students from across the state to qualify for the International Career Development Conference in Atlanta, Georgia.