FBLA state meet brings 500-plus middle schoolers to MCC
MCC’s Chandler Hamrick talks to the middle school students and advisors as the state
conference begins.
Some 519 middle school students from across Mississippi converged on Meridian Community College’s campus to compete in the state’s Future Business Leaders of America Competition (FBLA).
FBLA is a student business organization of young people aimed at developing the next generation of leaders in business, government, and communities. Through leadership and career development programs, FBLA seeks to bridge the gap between business and education.
Chandler Hamrick, MCC recruiting coordinator, said the College was honored to be the host again this year for the state-wide event. “This is an opportunity for MCC to be able to show off our campus as well as letting those students show their skills while competing for different awards and titles,” she said.
The students participated in 26 business-themed competitive events, such as business etiquette, digital citizenship, financial literacy, critical thinking, exploring economics, and more. Scott Central eighth-grade student Andrew Burks, who aspires to become an archaeologist, worked for about a month preparing the paper he presented to judges on archeology.
Kimberly Usry from the office of student organizations with the Mississippi Department of Education, spearheaded the event. “The objective of FBLA is to give these students leadership skills that will carry on to their adulthood,” she said.
Usry noted those students who scored in first through fourth places will have the opportunity to compete in the national competition in Anaheim, California, in June.
“MCC has always been very accommodating,” Usry noted, adding many MCC faculty, staff and students volunteered to help with the event from pulling T-shirts to judging competitions to showing the middle schoolers around campus.
For more information, visit meridiancc.edu.