Apr. 7, 2021 -- Cleveland Heights High School students Christian Hall and Faith Griffin-Hodge participated in the District 9 DECA Virtual Winter Competition in February 2021. They were 2 out of 400 DECA members to advance to the State of Ohio DECA competitions held during the week of March 15th. Both Christian and Faith succeeded at the State level and advanced to the State's final top twelve. 

During the competition, students had ten minutes to read a business-related scenario, prepare their solution to the given problem in a recorded video, and then upload the video solution to YouTube for a judge to evaluate. Due to this notable victory, Christian and Faith celebrated at the Lyndhurst Melting Pot through the generous contribution from AT&T. Ms. Parker, Heights High's DECA Advisor, is proud to have students representing and succeeding on such a level as this. 

To further highlight the competitive nature of the District and State competitions, students from the Auburn Career Center, Bedford High School, Cleveland Heights High School, Mentor High School, Maple Heights High School, Normandy High School, Parma Senior High School, Strongsville High School, Valley Forge High School, and Willoughby - Eastlake Career Academy were all in attendance to compete for a chance to advance to the State competition. 

DECA prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management in high schools and colleges around the globe. Their industry-validated competitive events are aligned with the National Curriculum Standards in the career clusters of marketing, business management and administration, finance, and hospitality and tourism. DECA's flagship evaluation process involves students in both a written component such as an exam or report and an interactive component with an industry professional serving as a judge. DECA's competitive events directly contribute to every student being college and career-ready when they graduate from high school.