The Distributive Education Clubs Association is operating on campus again.
DECA is an organization that brings students, educators, school administrators, and business professionals together to help build leadership and business skills.
Maranda Kitchingham, director of outreach in Meinders School of Business, said it is not necessarily making a comeback but is coming back from a pause.
“We had one of the members of the leadership team graduate, so we had to take a pause,” Kitchingham said. “It wasn’t necessarily that it stopped. It was more of a reorganization.”
Bequer Gomez, mass communications junior, is in charge of the organization.
The club plans to have monthly meetings and will have guest speakers discuss topics such as leadership, social media, body language, and how to dress professionally.
It also organizes the Business and Industry Networking luncheon, which connects students with business professionals to discuss internships and entry-level jobs.
“We’ve been doing the luncheon for seven years now,” Kitchingham said. “All the students who are here have the opportunity to sit down with someone in their field of study and talk about job opportunities, especially since it is so difficult to get entry level jobs out of college.”
DECA has something to offer students of any major, Gomez said.
“DECA prepares their members to be academically prepared, community-oriented, professionally responsible, and experienced leaders,” he said. “Anyone can join, even if they are not a business major.”
Joe Wathika, economics senior, is helping Gomez plan events. Wathika said DECA is not just important to this campus, but also to high school students that are part of DECA.
“It’s important to Meinders because it helps students gain skills they may not gain in class,” he said. “It is also important to high school students who are a part of DECA, so they can already feel like Meinders is their home.”
To join DECA, students can fill out the online form at okcu.formstack.com/forms/club_registration or email Gomez at bagomez@my.okcu.edu.
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