St. Louis High School’s chapter of Business Professionals of America participated in the State conference competition at the Amway Hotel Plaza located in Grand Rapids, Thursday, March 10 through Sunday March 13. 

This is the first time in two years that the team has been able to compete in an in-person State conference. The hopes of the past regional conferences were crushed by the effects of Covid-19, and instead of the traditional conference, the team participated in a virtual conference last year. But, it was different this time around!

BPA Co-President, Delaney Hitsman stated, “This was my first state conference even though I have been in BPA for three years. I met so many new people, I just really wish I had the chance to experience this event one more time. I made lots of friends after seeing them in different events. We also got to walk around a lot and explore the plaza in our free time, which I thought was really fun. One of my favorite parts was the opening session and award show because the entirety of the conference was in one big room together.” 

The students began their weekend with a trip to Craig’s Cruisers before they headed out to the Hotel. Here, the students jumped on the trampolines, played laser tag, raced each other on the race track, spent time at the arcade, and ate lots of food. This stop is a tradition when attending the BPA state conference. 

The rest of Thursday night was filled with getting bags unloaded and getting settled in the hotel, and the next few days were where the fun began. Over the course of Friday and Saturday, many students competed in events throughout the entire day. There were so many things to do at the hotel that any free time was usually spent exploring the stores and museums that surrounded the Plaza.

Allison Onstott stated, “I had a lot of fun throughout the conference. Saturday night was probably my favorite part; we got to have a karaoke and movie night after dinner. Then Mrs. Biehl got us pizza later that night and we all hung out in our hotel rooms for the rest of the night. Overall, it was a great time, not only because I made it to nationals in my event but because I got to experience lots of new things and meet new people.”

Many students did especially well in their events, and actually moved on to the National conference! Medalists from the weekend include Lillie Shattuck (1st), Marlena Pestrue (2nd), Allison Onstott (2nd), Curtis Bradshaw (3rd), Gracie Shattuck (4th), Lucee Mikek, Dominick Girad, and Jaiden Dickman (3rd), Briana Howard (6th), Jenna Abell, Marlena Pestrue, and Payton Kuhn (7th).

St. Louis High School’s chapter of Business Professionals of America will next compete in the National conference which will be held in Dallas, Texas, from May 4-8.