April 29th through April 31st, twenty members of the GBHS “Future Business Leaders of America” team drove to Topeka, Kansas to compete at state. Of the twenty that attended and competed, seven members qualified in the top three placements of their competition, which means they have to choice to move onto nationals! The competitors that have the opportunity to compete this summer in Anaheim, California include Lindsey Newman, Rossiel Reyes, Kaitlyn Moos, Allison Regehr, Kaitlin Adams, Wyatt Rugan, and Ashtin Heath.

Kaitlyn Moos, and Rossiel Reyes teamed up for state and competed for placement in Graphic Design, and placed first! Other placements at state by GBHS students include Allison Regehr who placed third in organizational leadership, Ashtin Heath, who placed fourth in healthcare administration, Kaitlin Adams, who placed fourth in business law, Wyatt Rugan, who placed third in person finance, and Lindsey Newman, who placed third in business communications.

Along with Great Bend, there are 125 schools in the state that are active in FBLA programs, The mission statement of FBLA is “To bring business and education together in a positive working relationship through innovative leadership and career development programs”. A spoken purpose of this program is to help the youth of America become educated with real-world experiences and problems, so then after graduating, the students may take what they’ve learned in the program and use it to their advantage.

Rossiel Reyes and Kaitlyn Moos, the team that placed first in Graphic Design at state both told me that they plan on going on to compete at nationals. Kaitlyn said, “I am planning to take the trip to nationals because it’s a great opportunity to be able to take our project and compete against people from different states.” When asked her favorite thing about being a member of FBLA, Rossiel said “I get to meet new people from different schools and I get to make myself a stronger leader while also having fun. I benefit from participating in the club by gaining leadership skills, real life skills, and educational knowledge that helps me everyday.” Both said that their favorite part about the trip was getting to hang out with friends.