Jamie Jackson wins at DECA State Conference in Southaven

2016 Mar 21

Jamie Jackson of Hernando was among several Northwest Mississippi Community College DeSoto Center's DECA students who placed in the DECA State Conference Feb. 24-26 in Southaven.

Enrollment in Northwest DECA is limited to Business and Marketing Management Technology or Hotel and Restaurant Management Technology students. The students participated in various competitions at the event, and placed in several categories.

Northwest came away from the competition with several first place awards. First place winners included Mackenzie Hargett of Olive Branch and Pearlie Macklin of Horn Lake, Business Ethics; Emily Endraske of Byhalia, Entrepreneurship: Starting Your Business; Claire Downen of Hernando, Rachel O'Halloran of Walls and Tanner Lowe of Horn Lake, Entrepreneurship: Growing Your Business and Alexandria Ristucci of Hernando and Danielle Blackwell of Southaven, Event Planning. Hargett and Macklin also brought home a first place award for Outstanding Chapter of the Year Scrapbook, and Hargett won first places for DECA Banner of the Year and T-Shirt of the Year.

Third place winners included Amber Irwin and Kristin Ma of Southaven and Andrea Green of Horn Lake, Entrepreneurship: Starting Your Business; Endraske, Lorrie Jackson of Walls and Karyn Malone of Hernando, Culinary Competition. Fourth place winners were Charles Oswalt and Jamie Jackson of Hernando and Lisa Tobias of Byhalia, Culinary Competition. Sixth place winners were Sherion Parker of Memphis, Tennessee and Carl Mosby of Southaven, Sports and Entertainment.

First, second and third place winners are eligible to participate in the International Career Development Conference in Washington, D.C. April 16-19.

"I have taken students to International Competition for 18 years in many different locations. It gives me great pleasure to introduce students to travel and some for the first time to fly, stay in luxury hotels, experience unique dining, tour historical places, meet people from the United States and other countries, and most of all enter challenging competition against the best in the world. I am a strong supporter for DECA and for what it stands for-to prepare students to be leaders and entrepreneurs in careers such as marketing, finance, hospitality, management and other business enterprises," said Katherine Mistilis, Hotel and Restaurant Management Technology instructor.

Mistilis stated that DECA emphasizes professionalism on every level and is a student- driven organization whose program of leadership and personal development is the only student organization operating in all 50 states.

"DECA has remained on the cutting edge of educational innovation and has become nationally known for integrating academic achievement with vocational skills and creating linkages with the business community," Mistilis said.

For more information on Northwest's DECA program or the Business and Marketing Management Technology or Hotel and Restaurant Management Technology programs, visit the college's website at www.northwestms.edu.

Pictured: Collegiate DECA students from Northwest Mississippi Community College's DeSoto Center participated in the DECA Mississippi competition in Southaven in February. Winners included front row, left to right, Amber Irwin of Southaven, Claire Downen of Hernando and Andrea Green of Horn Lake. Second row, left to right, Rachel O'Halloran of Walls, Sherion Parker of Memphis, Tennessee, Mackenzie Hargett of Olive Branch, Emily Endraske of Byhalia, Pearlie Macklin of Horn Lake, Alexandria Ristucci of Hernando and Danielle Blackwell of Southaven. Back row, Tanner Lowe of Horn Lake, Karyn Malone of Hernando, Jamie Jackson of Hernando, Charles Oswalt of Hernando, Lorrie Jackson of Walls and Kristin Ma of Southaven. Not pictured, Carl Mosby of Southaven. (Photo submitted)