Sophomore Zach Paglia, 16, and freshman Tyler Beach, 14, have found a good fit in M-P's School for Entrepreneurs. The two boys attended the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) State Conference in Spokane April 9 to 11, and came home winners.

Approximately 3,000 business students and club members from around the state gathered in Spokane to participate in workshops, competitive events and, of course, Karaoke Night and the FBLA dance.

The competitive events simulate real business situations, allowing the students to use knowledge and experiences gained from participating in the club. For their competition, Zach and Tyler spent a month and a half preparing a business presentation on the subject of "Cyber Security."

"It is a really competitive event," said Zach. "The other students presenting had the same information, so we knew we had to present better than the other competitors."

They each spent two full weeks gathering information and the remaining time preparing PowerPoint slides and then memorizing the text.

"We spent so much time on our presentation that we could have been blind folded and presented it," said Zach.

A panel of three judges watched the demonstration then questioned the team for five minutes. Zach and Tyler were excited to learn they had won their event and would be competing at the FBLA National Conference on June 21 in Anaheim, California.

"This next month we are going to tweak our presentation and work on raising the $1,000 we each need to go to the conference," said Zach.

Tyler added, "As a freshman I honestly didn't know what to expect my first year of high school. I didn't think I could achieve much as a freshman. And then I went to state for FBLA, and now I can't wait to go to Nationals."

Along with Zach and Tyler, eleven other FBLA students from M-PHS also attended the event. Megan O'Brien, a solo competitor who made it to the final round, took part in an event called "Creed," where she had to recite a poem based on the beliefs and principles of the FBLA organization. Other competitive events included impromptu speaking and testing of knowledge based upon FBLA procedures and philosophy.



Caption: Tyler Beach (left) and Zach Paglia display the award they won at the state convention for Future Business Leaders of America in April. The boys will now advance to the national competition in Anaheim.