Seven Warrenton High School students with a bent toward business recently earned top awards at the DECA District competition.Emily Brooks, Abby Bracht, Rachel Kroeger, Isabelle Hanratty and Ally Benkowich placed first in the individual competition. Harrison Griffin and Dylan Brooks placed third as a team.DECA was organized 70 years ago to help high school and college students prepare for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, entrepreneurship and management. There are more than 200,000 DECA members in 3,500 high schools internationally.Marcus Miazga, business teacher and DECA adviser at Warrenton High School, has taught at the school for six years. Miazga, a native Australian, gained work experience at US Bank and Edward Jones. After making his home in the US, Miazga earned his master’s degree with teaching as his goal.Miazga said he and his students cover real time issues in the classroom, with current financial information changing daily. His classes include marketing, sports and business management and economics.“It’s real and it’s happening today,” he said about fluctuating markets and financial changes. “Information gets dated pretty quickly but we discuss it all in class.”Students prepare for district competition by selecting a category of their choosing, completing a 100-question test and practicing problem solving by participating in challenging business scenario role plays.“District six is one of the hardest in the state,” said Miazga. “We compete against big-time schools.”Emily Brooks, president of Warrenton’s DECA chapter and a senior, reflected on how participating in DECA has helped her move toward a career in human relations (HR) management.“First I heard about Mr. Miazga’s Australian accent,” she laughed. “Before I became involved I totally could not be talking to you today. Now I see that employees are our greatest asset and that’s why I’m choosing HR.”Abby Bracht, also a senior interested in food marketing, tells how nerve-racking the competitions can be.“We all get the same scenarios to solve,” she said. “I want to leave a good impression solving the exact same problem. I want it different enough so they will remember.”Although Rachel Kroeger is not an athlete, she has found a niche in sports management and entrepreneurship and hopes to work in public relations or promote celebrities or athletes.“I don’t play sports, but I can go into the sports field because of DECA,” she said.Bracht said she had never considered the business field prior to joining DECA, but now realizes how much business impacts everyone in the world.The female first-place winners will compete at the state DECA competition March 12-14 at the Lake of the Ozarks.

Members of Warrenton High School's DECA chapter celebrate several wins at a recent district competition, including five first-place winners who will be advancing to the state competition March 12-14. Pictured, front row, from left are Emily Brooks, adviser and teacher Marcus Miazga, and Abby Bracht. Back row, from left, are Harrison Griffin, Isabelle Hanratty, Rachel Kroeger and Dylan Brooks. Record photo/ Cindy Gladden.