STUDENTS WIN NATIONAL AND STATE AWARDS WITH BUSINESS PROFESSIONALS GROUP

Several students from Iowa Lakes Community College have returned home with awards following the national competition for the Business Professionals of America organization – and three of them received top honors.

Students must be ranked as part of the ‘best’ at their state competition in order to receive an invitation to the national meeting which was held May 9-13 in New York, NY. The theme this year was "Destination: Success."

Receiving first place honors were Brittney Currans, Graettinger; Alexis Jehle, Havelock; and Jenna Bulfer, Fairmont, Minn.; were part of a team that won the national competition in Web Application Team. All three are in the Administrative Assistant program.

A second place award went to Whitney Hudson in Advanced Word Processing. She is from Emmetsburg and is in the Administrative Assistant program.

Receiving a third place awarded in Fundamental Word Processing Skills and a sixth place award in Medical Office Procedures was Jessica Hill. Hill, Spencer, is originally from Ida Grove and is in the Medical Office Technology program.

Tina Jehle, Havelock, Administrative Assistant program, took fourth place at nationals in Advanced Office Systems and Procedures.

To qualify for nationals, students first participated in statewide competition. Students from Iowa Lakes came home with several honors – including eight, first-place awards – following the state convention of the Business Professionals of America in Des Moines this spring.

John Grange won two, first-place medals in Microsoft Network Administration and PC Servicing and Troubleshooting. Grange is from Havelock and is in the Information Technology program at Iowa Lakes. He was also a part of a team which won the Web Application Team contest.

Anne Powell received first in Advanced Office Systems & Procedures Administrative; Powell also received Honorable Mentions in Extemporaneous Speech and Desktop Publishing. She is from Graettinger and is in the Administrative Assistant/Accounting Specialist programs.

Whitney Hudson, received first place in Advanced Word Processing Skills, fourth in Integrated Office Applications and Honorable Mention in Spreadsheet Applications & Analysis. She is from Emmetsburg and is in the Administrative Assistant program.

Brittney Currans won first place in Presentation Management – Individual. She was also a part of a team which won the Web Application Team contest and she was given an Honorable Mention in Basic Office Systems & Procedures. Currans is in the Administrative Assistant program and is from Graettinger.

Sara Rademacher and Lenah Woodall teamed up to take first place in the Administrative Support Team competition. Rademacher is in the Administrative Assistant program and is from Terril. Woodall is from Hartley and is taking the Office Specialist program. Woodall also received an Honorable Mention in Interviewing Skills.

Alexis Jehle was part of the team that took first in Web Application Team. She also received third in Database Applications as well as third in Spreadsheet Applications & Analysis. She is from Havelock and is in the Administrative Assistant program.

Another member of the Web Application Team was Jenna Bulfer. Bulfer also participated in Integrated Office Applications where she garnered a third place finish. In Advanced Word Processing Skills, she brought home an Honorable Mention award. Bulfer is in the Administrative Assistant program and is from Fairmont, Minn.

Tina Jehle, Havelock, Administrative Assistant program, received two second place awards, in Advanced Office Systems & Procedures and Payroll Accounting. She also received an Honorable Mention in Banking and Finance.

Jessica Hill, a student in the Medical Office Technology program, took third in Medical Office Procedures; fourth in Fundamental Word Processing Skills; and sixth in Interview Skills. Hill, Spencer, is originally from Ida Grove.

Tyler Gifford, Estherville, placed fifth in Integrated Office Applications. He took general courses this spring and has been accepted into the Wind Energy and Turbine Technology program for this fall.

Jill Plagman brought home a fifth place award in Spreadsheet Applications and Analysis. She also received an Honorable Mention in Keyboarding Production. She is in the Administrative Assistant program and is from Emmetsburg.

Tamara Etherington, Estherville, Administrative Assistant program, was ranked fourth in Banking and Finance. She also received an Honorable Mention in Payroll Accounting.

Receiving an Honorable Mention in Integrated Office Applications was Kristin Kathman, of Emmetsburg, who is in the Administrative Assistant program.

BPA members at Iowa Lakes are students enrolled in the Accounting Specialist, Administrative Assistant, Office Specialist, Secretarial Specialist, Medical Office Technology, Information Technology and Computer Specialist.

Business Professionals of America is a national career and technical student organization for high school and college students preparing for careers in business and office occupations. The organization's activities and programs compliment classroom instruction by giving students practical experience through application of the skills learned in college.