WITC-Ashland business students earn spots at national conference

WITC-Ashland students are heading to DC for the nation Business Professionals of America conference. Melinda Holverson, Leslie Hill, Instructor Sharon Duthie, Kerri Bergquist, Paula Pruss and Kaci Peterson will join 5,000 other BPA students at the nation’s capital in May.

(3/21/11): Top students from Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College will be attending the Business Professionals of America (BPA) 2011 National Leadership Conference, “Stand Out From the Crowd,” in Washington, DC, May 4-8 2011.

WITC-Ashland chapter members, Kerri Bergquist, Leslie Hill, Melinda Holverson, Kaci Peterson and Paula Pruss will join more than 5,000 other conference delegates from across the nation to participate in national level business skills competitions, workshops, general sessions and the national officer elections. Besides having the opportunity to excel, they’ll experience the history and government of our nation through Washington, DC monuments, memorials and museums.

The unique highlight of the conference this year will be the National Leadership Conference Opening Session at the foot of the Washington Monument. All conference attendees will stand together at this historic site as the first Career/Technical Student Organization to gather at the National Mall.

“The conference will be the culmination of a school year’s worth of business skills education and training which members of the local chapter of Business Professionals of America at WITC-Ashland have received,” said chapter advisor, Sharon Duthie, who teaches for the Administrative Professional program.

Four of the five students who participated had earned fifth place or better in business related competitions at the BPA state conference. The team of Berquist, Hill, Holverson and Pruss earned first place in Administrative Support Team. In addition, Berquist earned first in Fundamental Spreadsheets and fifth in Database Applications. Hill placed second for Database Applications. Holverson earned first in Insurance Concepts, third in Medical Office Procedures, third in Basic Office Systems and Procedures and third in Fundamental Word Processing. Pruss placed second in Insurance Concepts, fourth in Desktop Publishing and fifth in Basic Office Systems and Procedures.

Business Professionals of America is a national organization for high school, college, and middle school students preparing for careers in business and information technology. The organization’s activities and programs complement classroom instruction by giving students practical experience through application of the skills learned at school. Business Professionals of America acts as a cohesive agent in the nationwide networking of education and business and industry. BPA is contributing to the preparation of a world-class workforce through the advancement of leadership, citizenship, academic, and technological skills.

Business Professionals of America is assisted in this endeavor with financial support from corporations and companies including AICPA, Microsoft, Adobe, CIW-Certification Partners, Shell and South-Western/Cengage, who sponsor BPA’s National Leadership Conference, and member career building programs and scholarships.

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WITC-Ashland business students earn spots at national conference