On Monday, January 10th, Ramapo and Indian Hills students competed at New Jersey DECA’s Bergen County regional competition at Ramapo College. The group, led by newly appointed district advisor Mr. Funabashi and student leadership team President of Ramapo DECA Annie Landers, Vice President of Ramapo DECA Amelie Sofocleous, President of Indian Hills DECA Morgan Quill, and Vice President of Indian Hills DECA Miranda Civadelic, successfully completed role plays using business strategy and communication skills.
DECA (Distributive Educational Clubs of America) is an international high school and college organization preparing students for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management through project-based learning, and competitive events (DECA.org).
Through the high school segment, DECA hosts regional, state, and a final level competition, ICDC (International Career Development Conference) where students are required to test on knowledge pertaining to their specific events (i.e. Entrepreneurship, Business Management and Administration, Hospitality and Tourism, etc.) and then perform a role play communication or presentation of a prepared display with a judge posing as a business partner. Starting competition at the regional level, students must place high enough in order to qualify for the following level of competition. Scoring for the leaderboard is composed of both their individual test scores and performance scores of completed role plays.
More than 100 individuals from Ramapo and Indian Hills placed high enough to move onto the next round of competition: the New Jersey State Competition in Atlantic City from March 3rd-5th.
With the recent retirement of former Ramapo DECA advisor Ms. Fanale, the Ramapo DECA chapter was in search of new leadership this past fall. Mr. Funabashi, the Indian Hills DECA advisor, took on the position and now leads as the advisor for the combined program.
Mr. Funabashi labeled navigating a combined DECA team as “sincerely rewarding.” He went on to say, “The RIH DECA chapter is one of the largest and most competitively successful in New Jersey. With over 200 students, we have future Ivy Leaguers, current business owners, and leaders. It has been truly an honor to work with such ambitious students.”
Ms. Vita, business teacher at Ramapo, is also a prominent figure in the leadership of DECA and has been very involved with the DECA organization at Ramapo.
Annie Landers, senior and President of DECA’s Ramapo chapter, stated, “Although RIH DECA is made up of two schools, it really is just one big chapter. So, getting to work closely with Ami, Morgan, and Miranda, as well as both executive boards has really made the leadership of this chapter built on collaboration and dedication. Us four [Ami, Morgan, Miranda, Annie] have worked closely to prepare our Roleplay Night that gets members ready for districts, keep track of forms when sign ups are coming in for events, and coordinate what we are presenting at meetings.”
Annie has been a very involved member of DECA since her freshman year competing in the Marketing and Communications Event. She placed 5th and 2nd at the state level in her Sophomore and Junior year qualifying her for ICDC. In 2024, Annie was a Top 20 finalist at ICDC in California! Annie describes, “I am a senior this year, so this last regional conference was bittersweet, but I am excited for Atlantic City in March. I’m looking forward to soaking in every last experience with DECA, and although there is competition and some stress when it comes to these conferences, the friendships I have made and the opportunities I have gotten to take advantage of by being a DECA member are what I will miss the most next year.”
Mr. Funabashi states that the difficulty of running DECA is ultimately his favorite part. As a large student organization, DECA requires a process for planning and coordination. The leadership team utilizes Google Sheets and Gmail chains along with constant reminders on Schoology to keep ample communication. Mr. Funabashi personally values the ability to seek out challenges throughout his life and problem-solve in order to grow as an individual. “I like the kind of person it forces me to be on a day-to-day basis,” he says.
As RIH DECA continues to work hard towards the next milestone, DECA members remain hopeful and determined to qualify beyond and compete at the national level in Georgia! Mr. Funabashi shares that same excitement, “It has taken a lot of work and preparation to get to this point, and we certainly have a lot to do in the coming months. But after our incredible showing at the Ramapo College District Conference, I’m predicting there will be a flight to Georgia with a lot of students in my near future!”
