Warren County Career Center students went into the 2021 District One DECA Competition in December with high hopes.

Most of them came out with high hopes for the state competition in February.

Students developed their skills and knowledge in class. They worked with advisors and practice role-play judges Tim Holter of Prudential and John Papalia of the Warren County Chamber of Business and Industry.

At the Dec. 8 event held at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford, they faced 100-question exams in their subject areas and real-world role-play scenarios they had to work through and present solutions to judges.

In all, 18 career center students went to the district competition. They competed with students from five other career centers — Bradford, Brookville, Dubois, Ridgway, and St. Marys.

The top two individuals or teams in each event moved on to the state championship in February.

Warren County students competed in eight events and placed six individuals and two teams to go on to states.

One of those individuals was Mitchell Rossman, a veteran of both the district and state competitions.

“I was a participant in the DECA program in 2019 and in 2021,” Rossman said. “In 2019, I placed second in Principles of Hospitality and Tourism.”

He moved on and finished tenth in the state.

“You must be in the top four to advance to the national level,” Rossman said.

This year, he competed in Hotel and Lodging Management. And he improved over his previous result.

“I was able to place first, which allowed me to attend the state competition in February,” he said.

At the competition, the judges award three trophies for those who perform best over all of the categories – one for role-play, one for test score, and one for overall.

“I was also awarded the best role-play and best overall score out of every event in the competition which I was very happy to receive,” Rossman said.

“The program and especially my teacher have gone a long way to improve many skills that I was lacking in before I joined the career center,” Rossman said. “It’s boosted my self-confidence, my interest in the field, and my overall desire to succeed.”

His experience is not limited to the classroom sort.

“The career center has also allowed me to get a job at the Hampton Inn & Suites by Hilton in North Warren through the TANF program,” he said. “Currently, I work at the front desk four to five days a week.”

Advisor Cathie Cummings attributes a portion of the district students’ success at the role-play portion of the event with working with Papalia and Holter.

“We really appreciate the time and expertise that Tim and John gave to our students to help them prepare for the District Competition,” Cummings said.

In addition to Rossman, Warren County students who scored in the top two in their events at the district event and will compete at the state event include:

¯ Kendra Chase and Paige Dexter — Team Entrepreneurship — First Place;

¯ Macey Eyler — Automotive Services Marketing — First Place;

¯ Christian Green — Marketing Communications — First Place;

¯ Caidence Braley and Kaylee Lundmark — Team Travel and Tourism — Second Place;

¯ Peyton Gazdak — Restaurant and Food Service Management — Second Place;

¯ Jacey Reagle — Entrepreneurship — Second Place; and

¯ Sarah Tome — Apparel and Accessories Marketing — Second Place.

“We’re very proud of them,” Cummings said.

The state event will be held Feb. 16 through 18 in Hershey.