Inside The Issue:

CRLC—Get “Wild” 2

State Officer Spot-

light

2

DECA-FIDM Chal-

lenge

3

DECA-Finish Line

Challenge

3

A Letter from the

National President

4

Facebook: Where

Does your State

Rank?

4

careers fields in one

of the world’s largest

cities.

Registration

ends on October

3rd. Slots are only

available for the sec-

ond conference, which

is Dec. 7—11.

Have you ever

wanted to experience

the Big Apple? Well,

DECA is giving you

the opportunity to

fulfill your dream.

DECA will

once again be hosting

two New York Experi-

ence Conferences.

The first con-

ference will be Nov.

30—Dec. 4. The sec-

ond conference will be

Dec. 7—11.

The New York

Experience will give

attendees the unprece-

dented opportunity to

learn about exciting

DECA is Going to The Big Apple

October has

always been one of

my favorite months.

The weather is

crisp and cool. The

NFL is in full-

swing. And, of

course, DECA is

beginning to kick

into high-gear.

As you begin

to attend confer-

ences and think

about competition, I

encourage you to

keep the “Aspire

Higher” theme in

mind. Use this

theme as your

motto for this year

in DECA; continu-

ally strive to be bet-

ter than you ever

have been.

As I serve

you this year, I

promise I will too

“Aspire Higher.”

My goal is to serve

you to the best of

my abilities and

strengthen our en-

tire association.

Please do

not hesitate to con-

tact me at any time.

If you wish to get in

touch with me, send

an email to decavp-

micah@gmail.com.

DECA Wishes,

Micah Melling

Central Region VP

Central Region

DECA

A Word from Your CRVP

Special Points of Inter-

est:

This year’s CRLC is one

“wild” conference that

you do not want to miss.

Conference coordinator

Nicole Coffey gives you

some great insight to this

“wild” conference on Page

2.

Thanks to DECA’s part-

nerships with FIDM and

Finish Line, members

have the opportunity to

participate in some excit-

ing challenges.

National President Claire

Coker discusses the im-

portance of believing in

the power of DECA.

October, 2011

Volume 1, Issue 2

can give you direction

towards a career,”

says Maddie.

Also, two sum-

mers ago, Maddie

had the opportunity

to live in China for

six weeks with a Chi-

nese family.

“It was such a hum-

bling experience that

taught me to never

take anything for granted,”

says Maddie.

And we shouldn’t take

Maddie’s dedication to DECA

for granted.

Business owner. World

traveler. Avid runner. These

are all terms that describe

Maddie Mayleben, Michigan

DECA’s State Secretary.

Maddie has been in-

volved with DECA for two

years and has enjoyed every

minute of the experience.

“I remember sitting in

the audience when they an-

nounced who the new State

Officers were,” says Maddie.

“When I heard my name, I

didn’t know how to react. I

felt so honored to be chosen.”

In addition to being

involved in

DECA, Maddie is

the co-owner of

“Dipped,” a

snack shop that

sells delicious,

dipped treats.

Maddie is also an

accomplished

runner, compet-

ing in both track

and cross coun-

try for her high school since

her freshman year.

“Being involved in dif-

ferent activities is important

because it helps you to learn

what your interests are and

Micah Melling’s interview

with Nicole Coffey, CRLC

Conference Coordinator:

Why should students at-

tend this year's CRLC?

This year’s Central Region

Leadership Conference is go-

ing to be WILD! Nebraska is

excited to host the conference

and share with our fellow

members how great a city

Omaha is! We've put together

a great conference loaded with

activity: outstanding keynote

speakers, the best business

professionals from national

and global companies head-

quartered in Omaha, a WILD

dance party, a live music and

entertainment night spon-

sored by Finish Line, AND our

signature event -- the Leader-

ship Safari at the Zoo! The na-

tion's #2 ranked zoo will be

the home of Amazing Race

meets Survivor meets DECA!

Members won't want to miss

it!

How will conference activi-

ties positively affect stu-

dents?

This conference is tradition-

ally one of the best confer-

ences a DECA member can

attend all year, and this year

is no exception. The network-

ing opportunities are incredi-

ble, not only to meet other

members but to meet and

learn from business profes-

sionals in career areas in

which members have interest.

The leadership training will

really encourage members to

step outside their comfort

zones as leaders, work on a

team, and develop those per-

sonal and communication

skills that will give them the

confidence and tools needed to

be successful in the future.

What makes this confer-

ence different than other

DECA conferences?

This conference is different in

its delivery - we're on a mis-

sion to make sure that DECA

members become inspired by

what they experience and are

ready to Aspire Higher, to be-

come leaders in their commu-

nities and passionate about

their chosen career paths. By

attending CRLC in Omaha,

we know members will leave

the conference better equipped

for their future.

CRLC: Be There. Be Wild

The State Officer Spotlight is on Maddie Mayleben

Central Region DECA Page 2

Those participating

will present their ideas to

FIDM executives through

videos posted on YouTube.

So, do you think you

have what it takes? If you

do, go to the following link

to get more information:

http://www.deca.org/

events/fidmchallenge/.

Please note that

this challenge ends of

February 10.

Do you have what it

takes to develop a line of

clothing? Now, do you

have what it takes to mar-

ket your line of clothing?

If you are up to the task,

The Fashion Institute of

Design and Merchandis-

ing (FIDM) wants to hear

from you.

DECA has once

again partnered with

FIDM to bring members

an exciting challenge.

Participants in the

DECA-FIDM Challenge

are asked to create a run-

way-worthy garment out

of previously used fabric.

(The cost of the materials

cannot exceed $20).

Participants are

also asked to develop a

marketing campaign for

their newly developed

product.

and recommendation for

improvement to Finish

Line executives via vid-

eos uploaded to You-

Tube.

The top three teams

will be flown to Indian-

apolis, Indiana to present

their findings to Finish

Line executives. The win-

ning team will receive a sti-

pend to cover all expenses

to DECA’s International

Career Development Con-

ference in Salt Lake City.

To find out more

about this opportunity, visit

http://www.deca.org/events/

finishlinechallenge/.

The deadline for this

challenge is December 19.

Picture this: You’ve

been flown to one of the

largest cities in the

United States to meet

with the executives of one

of the biggest companies

in the world. These ex-

ecutives are hanging on

your every word, eager to

hear what you have to say.

After your presentation, the

executives congratulate you

on your hard work. In fact,

they liked your presenta-

tion so much that they are

going to pay for you to at-

tend a conference in one of

the most exciting cities in

the U.S.

Pretty good deal, isn’t

it?

This scenario could

become a reality, thanks to

DECA and Finish Line.

The DECA-Finish

Line Challenge is returning

once again. In this chal-

lenge, DECA members, in

teams of 1-3 people, will

conduct market research at

their local Finish Line

store.

After the research

has been completed, teams

will present their findings

Do You Like Fashion? If You Do, This is a “Must Read”

Crossing the Finish Line: An Exciting Challenge

Page 3 Volume 1, Issue 2

his life to bringing

awareness about mus-

cular dystrophy in

hopes of finding a cure.

I also was able to hear

from some of the lead-

ing minds in education

at the NBC Education

Nation Summit, such as

Melinda Gates and Bill

Clinton. What all these

leaders have in common

is that they have dedi-

cated their time and ef-

forts into something

they believe can make a

difference.

As DECA mem-

bers, we should dedi-

cate our time to spread-

ing awareness of what

DECA can do for stu-

dents. We are innova-

A Letter from Your National President

tive thinkers who have

the capability of chang-

ing the world. Never

forget that what you do

in DECA is just as im-

portant as what these

great leaders have done

with their efforts.

To make your

DECA year a success:

believe in what DECA

can do for students,

spread the word, stay

motivated, and always

ASPIRE HIGHER.

Best Wishes,

Claire Coker

National DECA Presi-

dent

Central Region DECA,

This past month, I

have been lucky enough

to meet some of the

most inspiring people

from across the nation.

I met Luke Christie, an

MDA ambassador and

collegiate DECA mem-

ber, who has dedicated

Facebook “Likes”: Where Does Your State Rank?

1. MI: 3,682

2. WI: 1,476

3. MN 1,199

4. IN: 793

5. IL: 776

6. NE: 614

7. KS: 437

8. SD: 404 9. MO: 394 10. IA: 315 11. ND: 297 12. KY 250 13. OH: 186