DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America) competed in their state competition that wrapped up on Saturday in Houston, with five students advancing to the international competition in California.

For senior Sindhu Pannuri, advancing to the International Career Development Conference (ICDC) is a reward for her work. 

“Yeah, it definitely feels really surreal, but I know we have worked super hard and put a lot of time and effort to get to the point that we’re at, so it’s really exciting, especially cause it’s my senior year,” Pannuri said. “To know that just cause it’s my senior year doesn’t mean that accomplishment stops.” 

Junior Anvi Saxena had a great experience growing both socially and academically.

“DECA state was such a fun experience,” Saxena said. “I think that it helped me grow not only in my business area but also socially. I got to interact with people that I normally don’t talk to I think overall it was a great experience that I think a lot of people should have.”

Students such as senior Shruti Bhoyar took time to explore Houston..

“My favorite part about competing at state was that we got to explore Houston,” Bhoyar said. “I thought it was really pretty, and we had a lot of freedom to do what we wanted to do, and the competition was run really well, so everything was on time, and we got to have a really great experience.”