FBLA National Competitors Share Chicago Experiences Prior to LDI Informational Meeting

By: Donya Hassanshahi

FBLA advisor and members recall their week-long experience at the national leadership conference [NLC] over summer break in Chicago preceding Tuesday’s Leadership Development Institute [LDI] informational meeting.

The recent FBLA meeting discussed the logistics and formalities of the Anaheim Leadership Development Institute [LDI] event. Such topics covered include location, dates, cost, spot availability, and requirements to attend.

Before the 2022-2023 school year began, members of the Future Business Leaders of America Club [FBLA] were permitted the opportunity to travel to the annual national leadership conference [NLC] held in Chicago— locations vary each year. Approximately twelve-thousand students from across the state and nation were present.

Events that Redwood students competed in included database, mobile application, public speaking, community service projects, political science, and participated in workshops.

Attendees of the week-long Chicago trip, from June 28th to July 3rd, reminisce over their memorable experiences and perceptions regarding their involvement with FBLA.

Jake Bettencourt, ’25 is the leadership partner and has been involved with the club for two years. He placed 10th in the nation for database design and application, being the only member to have received an award at nationals.

Bettencourt says the surreal moment of winning tenth “felt very cool. [He] was really surprised when [he] won the award because there’s a lot of people and it’s nationals”.

The most memorable part of touring the city and competitions was the free day he and fellow members had on the Saturday before they left. Such activities he toured include the aquarium, two museums, and the Van Gogh Art Institute. “It was really interesting. It was eye-opening to use the subway and see the city,” Bettencourt adds.

Lucy Ponce, ’24 is head of the committee and has been involved with the club for three years. She made it to finals and had a speaking event at the conference.

Outside of her presence at nationals, Ponce was active with tourist attractions, such as visiting China Town and the top of the Willis Tower with fellow members and advisor, Mr. Avila. At nationals, her responsibilities consisted of networking and conferences.

The most memorable experience was acquainting with students who shared similar ambitions with FBLA. “I didn’t know how big FBLA truly was until I went to NLC because there were people from all over and it was crazy to see so many leaders in one place,” Ponce says.

As an involved member herself, Ponce “strongly encourage[s] anyone to join the club and strive for nationals.” She adds, “I’m very passionate about FBLA. I love the club so much and when I found out that I placed to go to nationals, I immediately booked the ticket because I knew that it was going to be an experience to remember.”

As an involved member herself, Ponce “strongly encourage[s] anyone to join the club and strive for nationals.” She adds, “I’m very passionate about FBLA. I love the club so much and when I found out that I placed to go to nationals, I immediately booked the ticket because I knew that it was going to be an experience to remember.”

The Vice President of Activities, Jacob Hutchinson, ’24 has been involved with FBLA since his freshmen year. He competed in the Future Business Leader event, which consisted of an interview, test, and production of a resume and cover letter.

Hutchinson says that he and the other members enjoyed traveling and visiting places such as Willis Tower and going on the river. The most memorable experience was when he visited the tower because of the unforgettable sky deck and glass floors.

The Vice President of Competitions, Adam Hacker, ’24 is a two-year member. He competed in mobile application development, which consisted of developing an app to present to a few judges.

Each individual had to partake in activities that regarded FBLA everyday, such as workshops and meetings.

Hacker says a tourist activity that he and other members experienced was riding around the city in the L-Train. His favorite memory overall was “an architecture tour [they] took down the river”.

FBLA Advisor Mr. Jacob Avila is the Business Department Chair at Redwood. He teaches various courses such as Foundations of Business, Digital Literacy, and Empowering Entrepreneurs.

Avila says he enjoyed the awards ceremony, tourist attractions, and seeing his students engage with others. A key moment for him was when he and the attendees met the newer national CEO and acquainted with him.

At the state conference, approximately 2,000 people were present. Avila says, “There’s less people at our state conference than go to [Redwood], so when you’re at a 12,000 person event you’re like ‘we’re in section A5′, so [students] have to search the map and be like ‘where’s that?’.”

“I think what was refreshing this year is we took a lot of kids coming out of COVID and ten out of the twelve were underclassmen, so they’re back this year. After the pandemic, we like to see that there is progress, so seeing that we can move forward.”

This year’s club ambitions consist of placing top ten in state, similar to previous years in 2018 and 2019. Avila says their goal can be achieved through “bigger projects like mobile apps, 3-D animation; we have some kids with Mr. Henshaw doing video production events.”

As FBLA prepares for upcoming events and future meetings, Avila says that COVID created limitations as to what could be achieved, “We are trying to expand back to where we were because we couldn’t do tech events online. I’m very excited with the excitement level of the officer team and see where we go in competitions, too.”

Visit room 74 in the Business Building to collect further information about the upcoming Leadership Development Institute. Spots are limited; submit all forms and payments to the advisor, Avila, as soon as possible.

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