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Gateway DECA group, students capture national honors

DECA Competitors

Several members of Gateway Technical College’s Collegiate DECA team took home honors at the International Career Development Conference held April 22-April 27 in Washington DC.

Three students captured second-place honors at the competition. Christopher Shogren (Kenosha) captured second in the Professional Sales competition, while Lindsay Brieske (Racine) and Jeanne Gomez (Racine) took second in the Business Law competition category.

The team of Steven Kaywood (Lake Geneva), Eric Steve Cabrera (Lake Geneva) and Justin Gustafson (Lake Geneva) captured third place in Business Law.

Others to be honored include:

  • Rachel Bahr (Burlington)  and Ryan Billot (Whitewater) took sixth in Financial Statement Analysis
  • Brady Ritacco (Elkhorn) was a top 10 finisher in Entrepreneurship – Starting Your Business
  • Mary Gonzalez (Kenosha) and Serena Jones (Kenosha) finished in the Management Institute competition

The following are the awards that the Gateway Collegiate DECA students won, as a group:

  • 2013-14 Chapter Community Service Award: Gateway Technical College – Elkhorn Campus
  • 2013-14 Chapter Leadership Award winners: Erica Pitner (Burlington), Tanya Galvan (Burlington), Sabrina Furloni (Kenosha), Mary Gonzalez (Kenosha), Aaron Cole (Kenosha) and Sara Greeley (Racine)
  • 2013-14 Chapter Leadership Passport Award winners: Presidential Level:  Gateway Technical College – Elkhorn Campus; Gateway Technical College – Kenosha Campus
  • 2013-14 Individual Leadership Passport Award winners: Gold Level: Mary Gonzalez (Kenosha) and Sabrina Furloni (Kenosha)
  • 2013-14 Individual Leadership Passport Award winners: Blue Level: Erica Pitner (Burlington) and Serena Jones (Kenosha)

Several Gateway students also placed as international finalists in their events, finishing among the top 15 in their event category. Many categories featured more than 80 competitors from across the nation, from two- and four-year colleges.

  • Business Ethics – Connie Howen (Lake Geneva) and Erica Pitner (Burlington)
  • Restaurant & Food Service Management – Sabrina Furloni (Kenosha)
  • Banking and Financial Services – Flory Jerez (Kenosha)
  • International Sales Challenge – Greg Pitner (Burlington)
  • Professional Sales – Greg Pitner (Burlington)

The following students were recognized with medals for being among the top five in their competitive event’s comprehensive testing:

  • Accounting Exam – Mark Short (Kenosha)
  • Restaurant & Food Service Role Play – Sabrina Furloni (Kenosha)
  • Retail Management Exam – Kayla Groves (Kenosha)

Students spent the week competing in business simulations, case study scenarios, management institutes and entrepreneurship challenges. Each student participated in several career academy leadership sessions as well as Learn from the Pros sessions.

For more information, please contact Sara Skowronski, (262) 344-3840.