Another business competition meant another award for Wilbraham & Monson Academy's Jaehyuk "Sean" Chung '18.
This, however, wasn't just any award – this was an award at one of the largest business events in the world for high school students.
Sean won a medal at the DECA International Career Development Conference, which drew 18,000 students and business leaders to Anaheim, Calif., April 26-29.
"It was a lot of effort and time consuming but it's a good memory," Sean said.
Yes, awards often create good memories. Sean, competing in the Principles of Business Administration and Management category, earned a medal for reaching the final round of the international competition.
Participants took a 100-question test on the first day before role-playing an interview on the second day. Sean's performance during the first two days secured him a rare spot on the third day, where he completed another role-playing interview.
"Honestly, I had no prior experience of going to those conferences, whether it was the district, state or international," Sean explained. "I do realize any award at the international level is a great achievement. But I think other people, especially the state officers, were happy for me because as a first-year DECA member, to go to the finals for any sort of DECA, they were hyped up for me."
Sean won first place at the district competition and fourth place at the state level, which attracted 2,300 students.
At the state event, Sean was also nominated as a state officer, with some of those added responsibilities spilling over to the international event.
"Part of our job as state officer was to caucus for those state officers who were running for executive positions," Sean described. "We asked them questions about their campaign to see if they qualify for an executive role, and see if their campaign makes sense. Actually, a state officer from our state ran for the top executive position and was elected, which is big news for the state of Massachusetts."