Preparing since October by writing presentation proposals and practicing district tests, DECA students are gearing up for their competition of the year on Tuesday.

“Whenever we have our meetings we always emphasize the resources available to members to help them prepare and study for their events,” Co-President senior Riya Khosla said. “On top of that, we host zoom calls where people can ask questions or have workshops for roleplay events.”

DECA advisor Demas Lamas has high hopes for DECA members this year during the competition. 

“We should do really well just by the sheer numbers,” Lamas said. “I mean we’ve got 135 people that are going to be competing and that’s a lot of people who seem very prepared, studying, and getting ready for competition.”

The leadership team has been helpful in assisting members in preparing for the competition according to sophomore Sia Parpelli.  

“They have done a lot this year and it’s been very helpful in helping me and other members prepare,” Parpelli said. “It’s been more organized, they’ve had more meetings, and more workshops to help you understand your topic, which I really like.” 

Khosla has high hopes for her last year in the club.

“I want to make it to state and I’m a little bit nervous because I chose one of the hardest topics but I’m just going to study as much as I can,” Khosla said. “I’m looking over roleplays, practicing and I believe I can make it to state because of my experiences with competition in my previous years.”

On the other hand, first-year member sophomore Sivadeth Rajeev Nair hopes to gain beneficial experience from the competition.

“I’m competing in a team event for the first time so I’m kind of nervous about it,” Nair said. “I prepared and studied with my partner but we’ve never done roleplay before so I hope we can just get through the competition and learn something valuable from it, being my first year.”

However, whether it’s a member’s first or last year competing, Lamas believes studying is crucial for all.

“Study and practice are all there is, and you can also do practice role plays with your families and that’s a great way to get ready,” Lamas said. “Just study your material and get ready and remember to relax and enjoy when you get there.”