Southeast students attended the DECA state conference in the Lake of the Ozarks Feb. 17 and 18. Southeast DECA president Heather Hoffman won Collegiate Missouri DECA President, according to a post on the group’s Instagram.

DECA is an international organization that helps high school and collegiate students become better leaders and entrepreneurs in the fields of marketing, finance, hospitality and management.

SEMO DECA students won multiple awards at the competition:

Layla Bouzihay - First place in Fashion Merchandising & Marketing

Hoffman - First place in Retail Management

Hoffman & David Oliver - First place in Business to Business (B2B) Marketing

Bouzihay and Phillip Francis - Second place in Event Planning

Blake Patterson & Ryan Groszk - Second place in Financial Analysis Statement

Sam Jones & Zach Lakamp - Third place in Marketing Communications

Alicia Merry - Third place in Human Resource Management

Ella Koeninger & Payton Gronborg - Third place in Event Planning

Ethan Wann - Third place in Entrepreneurial Operations

Hoffman also received a medal for test proficiency above 80% and Connor Edison received a trophy for the highest score in Business Administration/Management.

DECA’s next conference will be in Baltimore, April 9-12.