From February 27th to March 1st, 34 Hopedale DECA members participated in the 66th Annual Massachusetts DECA State Career Development Conference, held in the Boston Seaport District. Over 4,000 students attended this year’s competition, with Hopedale students facing off against up to 45 competitors per category.

Hopedale DECA students competed in the Project Management event, where they applied project management skills to organize events such as a Financial Literacy Fair and a Career Fair for HJSJS students in grades 7-12, as well as a Growing Minds Activities Fair for elementary students. In the Operations Research category, students conducted thorough primary and secondary research on a business’s use of AI and explored ways to further integrate AI within the business.

Throughout the competition, Hopedale DECA members honed valuable networking and employability skills that will benefit them both in high school and in their future careers. 

Accomplishments include:

Top 12 finalists: Rose Deering: Hospitality and Tourism Professional Selling, Ryan Thompson: Professional Selling, Financial Consulting: Charlie Gingras

Top 5 Award Recipients Heading to the International Career Development Conference this April in Orlando, Florida! Jonathan Araujo, Leah Hodgdon, Patrick Madden: Project Management Financial Literacy, Daniel Carroll, Ella Innocent, Riley Mulligan: Project Management Sales Project, Charlie Keyes, Nofer Meshreky, Emily Oliver: Sports and Entertainment Operations Research, Josiah Lefever: Restaurant and Food Service Management Role Play

In addition, Hopedale DECA received Gold recertification for the Raider’s Nest School Based Enterprise, Diamond level for their Chapter of Excellence submission (2nd place in the state), and earned 7 Leadership Spots for the Thrive and Engage Leadership Academies at the International Career Development Conference.  

Moving on to the International Career Development Conference (ICDC) are 19 Hopedale students!  DECA members in attendance will expand their leadership skills and business knowledge while also networking with business professionals and peers from 50 different states, four U.S. territories, Canada, Mexico, Germany, Korea, and more. In addition to the Top 5 award recipients listed above, Alexandra Goode and Savannah Sene will be competing in the School Based Enterprise event. The following students will be participating in leadership academies: Rose Deering, Madelyn DiMaio, Emma Friesema, Kate Friesema, Charlie Gingras, Avery Miller, and Ryan Thompson. 

Hopedale DECA would like to thank all who made attending the state conference possible, including the officer team, DECA members and competitors, parents, guardians, and HJSHS staff. Thank you also to the 2025 Hopedale DECA State Sponsors who reduced competitor costs for the event. Thank you in advance to the Hopedale community for the continued support of Hopedale DECA member competitions and experiences. Please reach out to Talitha Oliveri, advisor, at [email protected] with questions or to receive additional sponsorship information.