DECA (organization)

DECA

Formation	1946
Type	Career and technical student organization (CTSO)
Location	1908 Association Drive Reston, Virginia, 20191-1591 United States
Membership	225,000+
Executive Director	Lou DiGioia
Staff	25
Website	www.deca.org

DECA Inc. is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit career and technical student organization (CTSO) with more than 215,000 members in all 50 United States, the District of Columbia, Canada, China, Germany, Guam, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Spain. The United States Congress, the United States Department of Education and state, district and international departments of education authorize DECA’s programs.

DECA is organized into two unique student divisions each with programs designed to address the learning styles, interest, and focus of its members. The High School Division includes 200,000 members in 3,500 schools. The Collegiate Division includes over 15,000 members in 275 colleges and universities.

The organization's mission statement is DECA prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality and management in high schools and colleges around the globe. The four components of the organization's Comprehensive Learning Program are that DECA integrates into classroom instruction, applies learning, connects to business, and promotes competition. DECA prepares the next generation to be academically prepared, community oriented, professionally responsible, experienced leaders.

Dr. Ed Davis served as Executive Director from 1992 to 2014. Paul Wardinski served as Executive Director from 2014 to 2018. On February 15, 2018, DECA Inc. named Lou DiGiola as the new Executive Director of DECA Inc. DiGiola officially began his term on April 1, 2018.

Governance and Partners

Executive Director - The Executive Director is responsible for implementing the Board’s policies, serving as the fiscal agent and primary spokesperson of the organization, and employing such staff as necessary to plan and execute the Board's policies. The current Executive Director is Lou DiGioia.

Board of Directors - A twelve member Board of Directors establishes policies relative to the interpretation and implementation of the constitution and bylaws. The current President of the Board of Directors is Mary Peres and the current President-Elect is Jacklyn Schiller.

National Advisory Board - DECA’s National Advisory Board (NAB) is composed of business partners that provide strategic advice for the organizations, professional insight on content and crucial financial support for programming. The current chair of the NAB is Andy Chaves from Marriott International, Inc.

Congressional Advisory Board - DECA’s Congressional Advisory Board (CAB) is a bipartisan group of United States Senators and Congressmen representing varied political philosophies, but all supporting Career and Technical Student Organizations as an integral part of delivering Career and Technical Education to ensure that America’s youth are college and career ready.

Conferences

The International Career Development Conference (ICDC) is available to all DECA members. Although only qualifying members may take part in the competitive events series, the conference also offers workshops, academies, and networking for students who wish to further their business skills. DECA ICDC is generally held in April or May of each year and 21,000+ members, advisors, and business professionals attend the conference. The location of the conference rotates between four cities: Anaheim, California; Atlanta, Georgia; Orlando, Florida; and Nashville, Tennessee.

Competition hierarchy:

• Regional (in some areas, this is known as Area Competition or District Competition)
• State Career Development Conference (SCDC) or Provincial Competition (Canada)
• International Career Development Conference (ICDC)

Other conferences include:

• Central Region Leadership Conference (CRLC)
• Emerging Leader Summit (formerly WROTC & SOLT)
• Innovations and Entrepreneurship Conference
• New York Experience
• North Atlantic Region Leadership Conference (NARCON)
• Southern Region Leadership Conference (SRLC)
• State Competitive Conferences (SCC)
• Sports and Entertainment Marketing Conference
• Ultimate DECA Power Trip
• Western Region Leadership Conference (WRLC)
• DECA AMPED

Competitive Events

DECA allows members to participate in ten different types of competitive events:

• Principles of Business Administration Events
• Team Decision Making Events
• Individual Series Events
• Personal Finance Literacy Event
• Business Operations Research Events
• Chapter Team Events
• Entrepreneurship Events
• Marketing Representative Events
• Professional Selling and Consulting Events
• Online Events

Competitive events fall into six different career clusters:

• Business Management & Administration
• Entrepreneurship
• Marketing
• Finance
• Hospitality & Tourism
• Personal Financial Literacy

Executive Officers

DECA's executive officer teams consist of one president and four vice presidents. A new team of officers is elected every year at the International Career Development Conference by voting delegates from around the globe. The executive officer teams serve as brand ambassadors for the organization during their term by attending conferences where they give speeches and present workshops.

Sources

External links

• Official website