After months of continuous hard work and preparation, DECA students on March 11-13 traveled to downtown Kansas City to compete for the chance to qualify for internationals.

At state, students could either compete as individuals or in teams in a variety of categories, and were asked to solve realistic workplace problems through one-on-one interactions with an executive community member.

After competing, they were evaluated by more than 100 business and industry professionals who served as competitive event judges.

After everyone competed, it was announced that two students qualified for internationals. Morgan Metcalf and Addison Haynes, both seniors, were the two that qualified for internationals.

“I was very pleased with the results because we had more people qualify or internationals than ever before,” DECA sponsor Mr. Barnes said.

They prepared for months before actually attending and spent hours editing and writing making sure everything was the way they wanted it.

“It was really exciting to find out that I had qualified for internationals,” Haynes said.

One of the things Metcalf had to overcome before state was public speaking. It isn’t one of Metcalf’s strong suits, so presenting her paper was extremely nerve wrecking. Luckily, she was able to practice it multiple times in front of her friends before state.

“I was absolutely thrilled to find out I was an international qualifier. I was shocked when I heard them call my name, but I was so proud of all my hard work,” Metcalf said.

Although they will not be attending internationals, because it falls on their senior prom, they both appreciate the amazing opportunity.

Along with competing, they were also able to meet other students that share similar interests as them while they were too. They were able to see how other DECA groups run, which may have given them some ideas for the future of Liberty’s DECA.

A majority of the people that are currently in DECA are seniors, so next year it will be a fresh start. Even with the seniors graduating, Mr. Barnes hopes to keep the momentum running and do as well at state next year.