Exeter Business Club Excels at FBLA Nationals

19 states qualifiers, 17 national qualifiers, 2 national placers and 1 division winner. In its first year competing, the Phillips Exeter Academy Business Club (EBC) had a fantastic performance at the FBLA Nationals and gave New Hampshire its first division win, ever.This unprecedented showing from the 11 Exonians who competed at nationals proved extraordinary considering the nascence of EBC. A year ago the club held its first meeting in the third floor of the Academy center, with a mediocre number of members and a loosely established outline for the year. Rapidly, the club began to evolve thanks to guidance of co-heads senior Joon Kim and uppers Cameron Gruss, John Wang and Melissa Lu.“I think the fact that we were able to have so much success our first year is a testament to the work that that the club, coheads and especially the advisers put in during the year,” Wang said.The work put in encompasses rehearsing and preparing for the competitions, including mock competition practices that the co-heads have incorporated into the weekly meetings. In addition, the co-heads gave out tests similar to the ones that would be used during nationals.While preparation was time consuming, it payed off. Out of the 17 who qualified, 11 of the club members won spots at the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) nationals event in Chicago, with two of them placing in the top ten. Upper Divya Bade placed 1st in the business math category. Also, upper Kaitlyn Kang placed 7th out of approximately 150 other competitors in public speaking.These accomplishments are even more impressive when considering the high standards held at nationals in comparison to states. Around eleven thousand students attended the Chicago event, and according to lower Aivant Goyal, many had several years of experience with FBLA and had come from larger states where qualifying had been tougher.“Compared to New Hampshire, nationals was a big jump, which I think surprised us a lot,”  Goyal said. “It was a lot bigger with more competitive students in general.” The requirements for each category also grew more demanding—at nationals, Goyal had to both take a test and perform in front of a judge to be scored in the section of entrepreneurship, while at states he only had to do the latter.Despite the club’s success in the event, EBC fosters a much less “cut-throat environment” than typical competition clubs on campus, according to Kim. He explained that the club offers a chance for Exonians to not just compete, but also work together in a “mutually-fostering environment.” The club also meets with similar high schoolers outside of Exeter and encounters interactions with other inspired peers.“My favorite aspect is the incredible vast population of business-minded high schoolers that we compete against,” Kim said. “I had known people who participated in FBLA at their own public high schools, and I thought that a conference where students could test their business knowledge was a crucial missing link in Exeter.”That missing link was filled up by the increasingly popular club. Within the team members, senior Spencer Burleigh describes the atmosphere as positively competitive. “I love how we all push one another to succeed—from the meetings to the state and national competitions, we’re there for each other,” he said.Upper Chris Agard agreed with Burleigh, emphasizing that this camaraderie the members feel distiguishes EBC from other clubs.“I think what separates our club from others at the moment is the closeness of our group, especially those who went to nationals,” he said. “I feel like we as a group are really tight-knit and that helped us performed better as a whole.”Many of the members who attended the competition said the team bonding moments were the most rewarding part of the trip. Burleigh described one late-night trip the club took to Chipotle, followed by a dance with several thousand people where club members had a chance to meet similar students at the competition.“[That night] was a great moment of bonding, not only within ourselves—we had already become close at that point—but also with other students around the globe,” he said.Like Burleigh, the highlight for Wang was just the opportunity to spend time with his friends and explore a new city.“It was nice just to be with other Exonians and people that we knew,” Wang said. “We had a lot of free time to walk around Chicago and [visit] Navy Pier, Milan Park and even a beach in the city. It was basically just a fun experience.”Overall, the event provided a fun time for everyone, as well as a great learning experience for students interested in business. Many members such as Kang now eagerly await the same competition next year after their positive initial experience.“My favorite part of the event was just that the club bonded a lot,” she said. “We spent a lot of time having fun in Chicago and meeting similar kids participating in FBLA. After having such a great time at this summer competition, I can’t wait for another year of EBC.”With such high expectations set by the success at the national competition, the club aims to advance itself even further next year by new training methods and devoted members. Kim encouraged new students to join the club, assuring them that Exeter Business Club will become a “highlight” of their Exeter career.“You will create close friendships through studying, preparing and workshopping with each other,” he said. “Plus, who knows, maybe you have what it takes to take Exeter’s name even higher.”