Bayville Intermediate School

After months of preparation, building unique products, business and marketing plans and presentations, 11 members of the Locust Valley high School DECA Club recently returned from the New York State Career Conference with several accolades and a new piece of history.

Senior Vito Ricciardi earned a medal for being one of the top 10 in his presentation in one of his role plays, while junior Chelsy Arrata became the first member in the club’s history to qualify for the DECA International Career Development Conference for placing fifth in Professional Selling. Club members Ann McAree and Mia Lu won their seminar, an event where students had to come up with a product to solve a consumer issue on the spot.

Team members competed in a mix of roleplays and presentations, working with teammates on the fly for some events and reciting carefully prepared product launches by themselves for others.

“It’s very nerve-racking,” Arrata said of the presentations. “But once you get going in the middle of your presentation, you feel a lot better about it.”

“It made it a little less nervy to have a partner because you know you have each other,” McAree said of the roleplays.

Upon their return, the team members have been excited to embrace the last few months of the school year as they continue to build and fundraise towards further successes next year.