A group of Missouri State University College of Business students have once again showcased its business leadership skills. 

Sixteen chapter members attended and competed at the Future Business Leaders of America’s (FBLA) State Leadership Conference (SLC) at Columbia College in Columbia, Missouri, on March 3. 

The FBLA, known as the largest business career and technical student organization globally, helps more than 230,000 members in middle school, high school and college prepare for careers in business.  

The SLC is a major event where members across the state gather to compete, learn and network. Top competitors get to represent their school and state at the National Leadership Conference (NLC). 

At the event in Columbia, the MSU team had an outstanding performance, with 24 first, second, third and fourth place finishes. The top four finishers in all competed events advanced to the NLC in Dallas, Texas, scheduled from May 31-June 2.  

“The competition was an amazing way for students to apply their knowledge to real-life situations,” said MSU FBLA president Thao Tran. “There’s a lot of value in learning to present in front of judges and gaining feedback so you can grow and improve.”  

The results 

• Computer Applications – Ellen Kowalski, marketing (first place)
• Cybersecurity – Mark Ablai, information technology (third place)
• Foundation of Economics – Grant Preddy, economics (first place) and Daniel Skinner, accounting (fourth place)
• Foundation of Entrepreneurship – Luke Hamilton, international business (first place)
• Foundation of Finance – Nathan West, accounting (second place)
• Foundation of Management – Alyson Harter, entertainment management (first place)
• Foundation of Marketing – Lyndsey Conley, marketing (first place) and Kowalski (third place)
• Foundation of Selling – Conley (third place)
• International Business – Hamilton (first place) and Barigbonme Naabien, logistics, materials and supply chain management (fourth place)
• Parliamentary Procedure – Preddy (first place)
• Retail Management – Tran, marketing (second place)
• Sports Management and Marketing – Harter (first place)
• Supply Chain Management – Naabien (first place)
• Accounting Case Competition – Joe Sizemore, accounting, Skinner, West and Preddy (first place)
• Future Business Facilitator – Tran (first place)
• Job Interview – Ava Lin, management and leadership (first place)
• Management Case Competition – Conley (first place)
• Marketing Sales and Communication Case Competition – Terrell Littleton, marketing and Nora Do, marketing (second place)
• Public Speaking – Perla Oxlaj, marketing (third place)
• Future Business Executive – Lin (first place)
• State of Chapter Presentation – Tran and Oxlaj (first place) 

For Sizemore, participating in this event led her to work with other students she would not have met otherwise.  

“With a common goal in mind, we were able to build a great project. It was a lot of work to get to the final product but presenting it and placing first in our event made it all worth it!” she said.   

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