Members of MIHS’ Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) chapter attended the International Career Development Conference (ICDC) from April 26-29, 2025 in Orlando, Florida after qualifying for the competition in Washington State’s DECA competition.
ICDC is difficult to qualify for, only the top 5 qualifies from each category at state making it. There are many different categories in all aspects of business and entrepreneurship, featuring a diverse range of topics from hospitality and tourism all the way to sports and entertainment marketing. Only 4% of all DECA members make it to ICDC and 26,000 students end up competing at the conference every year. ICDC is an international conference, and although most of the attendees are from the US, people all the way from Canada to China attend.
MIHS sent a total of 18 students to ICDC, many of whom have qualified in the past years for the competition. One senior, Jessica Xing, has attended ICDC all 4 years of high school and said that, for her, the qualifying process this year has been “not stressful at all,” rather “really chill because [she’s] a senior” and she’s simply “doing what [she’s] always been doing the last four years.”
Coach and teacher Shannon Tapp told me a little bit about DECA, describing the qualifying process as “inspiring. It definitely is teacher fuel for sure,” and even though it can be exhausting, it’s rewarding to “[watch] kids that [she’s] seen work really hard get nervous and put their best foot forward.”
She talks about how the compelling group of students displayed their business knowledge in activities as simple as pin trading, a big part of ICDC where students from each state get their own pins and negotiate for others. “It’s just fun to see kids kind of engaging even casually in these business skills and having fun and learning,” said Tapp.
Jen McLellan, the other DECA teacher and coach, said that “what’s powerful about DECA is that it’s an opportunity to put a student into a setting where they have to speak extemporaneously, pull out content, be persuasive [and] really get put on the spot to perform” and that many DECA ICDC alumni say “that single [conference] played out to be a really powerful educational experience that [they] can’t replicate” and that “it’s really impressive how [the DECA students] learn how to be poised and thoughtful and intelligent and smart and creative.”
If you’re interested in joining DECA, you have to take a business class here at MIHS. There are many great options and gateways to join DECA just for fun or even if you’re interested in pursuing a career in business!
