Community support of the Riverside Business Professionals of America organization gave 26 students a memorable and beyond-the-classroom education experience at the recent national conference in Dallas.
Lindsay Wyan, business teacher and co-BPA adviser, said 12 Riverside competitors earned a place on stage.
Those students included Riley Leeper, Zach Armbruster, Kirstin Schlumbohm and Sam Knight; and the fourth-place finishing Parliamentary Procedure Team, including the first three Riverside freshmen Jaidyn Jackson, Gavin Orsborne and Brice Kauffman, joined by juniors Tyler Knight and Rachel Knight and seniors Grace Brownlee, Kara Kauffman and Brody Rhoads.
In addition, Chase Davidson, a Riverside senior, was awarded a BPA college scholarship at the Leadership Conference. He is an Ohio BPA officer who recently concluded his term and will be continuing his education at American University in Washington, D.C. , in the fall.
Wyan noted the students participated in many opportunities at the conference, from networking with students from across the nation to attending professional development seminars and listening to national speakers. Some of this year’s nontraditional learning experiences included a trip to Waco to see how the city has been transformed thanks to Chip and Joanna Gaines.
“Our students also learned the history and impact that the AT&T Stadium, the Jones’ Family and the Dallas Cowboys and have had on the nation,” Wyan said. “We learned about the ice age, flooding and the recent unearthing of the Columbian Mammoths at a nearby state park.”
In an ironic twist, Riverside students were the Hoedown line dance leaders of the nation, including for the Texas students, according to co-adviser Michelle Weadock.
“Several years ago, Hank Harshbarger, a media student, complained that students didn’t know how to dance and therefore dances were not fun. Instead of complaining, Harshbarger and his media program classmates set out to create a change.
“Each year, incoming freshmen are taught more than two dozen line and group dances and the student body continues their love of line dancing from Ohio to Texas,” Weadock said.
Riverside students also witnessed how far a little bit of kindness went when they thanked the Southwest staff by giving them a treat bag and thanking them for their care and their service over the last tumultuous years of pandemic travel. Students also brought smiles to families’ faces and when they passed out extra cowboy hats to children in the airport on the return trip.
Riverside BPA members also extended their appreciation to the sponsors and community support of the Riverfest Concert this spring, which raised more than $10,000 for the trip.
This career tech student organization is offered in cooperation with the Ohio Hi-Point Career Center as part of the media and business satellite programs at Riverside.