From June 27 to July 1, youth from all over the country participated in the Future Business Leader of America’s (FBLA) National Leadership Conference in Baltimore, Maryland for the opportunity to win over $95,000 in cash awards. Three recent Chapel Hill High School High school graduates showcased their talents as future business leaders and walked away with top national honors.
“I am so proud of my students. They have been very successful in FBLA and worked very hard preparing for this,” said FBLA Adviser Kristin Caverly.
Chapel Hill High School High school graduates Myles Davis, Khalil Edmondson, and Cory Raxton competed with more than 12,000 students at the national level in Emerging Business Issues. They researched crowdsourcing as an effective way to raise money for a valid purpose and argue the negative—that crowdsourcing is ineffective because it can be used for personal gain.
They first competed in a preliminary round against more than 100 other teams from across the country. The top 14 finalists then competed in the performance finals, where they performed a six-minute speech in front of a panel of judges. At the FBLA Awards of Excellence program, the Chapel Hill team placed first overall.
“They competed last year in a different event and placed fourth in the nation. I am so happy they were able to go again this year,” explained Caverly. “I know they all have a bright future ahead of them.”
Participants from across the United States and three countries were in attendance to sharpen their core business skills, expand their networks and participate in business and business-related competitive events. In addition to the competitions, students immersed themselves in educational workshops, visited exhibits, and attended motivational speeches on a broad range of business topics.
This fall, the students will be attending college and pursue business degrees. Myles will be attending Seton Hall University, while Khalil and Cory will attend Michigan State University.
