From April 26^th to 29^th in Anaheim, California, Dominion DECA students competed against fellow marketing students from all across the world in a multitude of business and career competitions. Normally a force to be reckoned with, DHS’s DECA chapter didn’t disappoint—three teams, including one team who went on to be Top 10 in the world, made the international finalist stage.

The Joshua’s Hands trio—Meghan Grove, Riley Chugg, and Joey Pavich—along with Simmi Mangat and Hailey Hollerbach all placed within the top 20 teams globally, earning them ‘International Finalist’ status. Paige Stevens and Matthew Traenkle, two graduating seniors and four-year veterans of the Dominion DECA program, placed in the top 10 teams globally in their category.

Most Dominion students earned a place at ICDC by virtue of their top performances at Virginia DECA’s State Leadership Conference. Two students, DHS DECA President Emma Straub and sophomore officer Tomi Aluko, competed as representatives of Dominion’s school store Titans Corner (or, as it’s called in DECA jargon, ‘School Based Enterprise’ or SBE).

Although the stress of an international competition was obviously intense, DHS’s DECA cohort had plenty of time to enjoy themselves while in Anaheim. After competing, members were able to enjoy all LA had to offer, and went to Disneyland, an Angels game, and downtown Los Angeles.

Next year’s ICDC will be in Atlanta, Georgia—and one can only expect that Dominion’s DECA chapter will be well represented once again.