A group of University of the Ozarks students were among more than 1,800 of America's best and brightest college students who traveled to Nashville to showcase their talents as future business leaders and vie for the opportunity to win $79,000 in cash awards.
Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda (FBLA-PBL), the world’s largest and oldest student business organization, held its National Leadership Conference in Nashville on June 24–27. Participants from across the United States and two countries were in attendance to sharpen their core business skills, expand their networks, and participate in more than 55 business and business-related competitive events.
All seven U of O students who competed in the event received national recognition at the PBL Awards of Excellence ceremony on June 27. Catalina Chen and Mynor Pineda won fifth place in the Business Analysis & Decision Making category, Gabriella Peña was fifth in Public Speaking, Andrea Chamorro and Andrea Villafranca took home sixth in Marketing Analysis & Decision Making, Amanda Paz finished seventh in Impromptu Speaking, and Julie Petz took seventh in Personal Finance.
U of O student Josephine Compton, who is a state officer in the organization, also attended the conference.
"Our students displayed excellent presentation skills and academic expertise," said Cindy Lanphear, assistant professor of business and management and lead adviser of the University’s PBL chapter. "Our students marked their place in the top seven in the nation within every category in which they competed. We couldn’t be more proud of our students and the professionalism they showed in representing their University and themselves in this competition."
The competition was part of a comprehensive national events program, sponsored by FBLA-PBL, that recognizes and rewards excellence in a broad range of business and career-related areas. For many students, the competitive events are the capstone activity of their academic careers. In addition to the competitions, students immersed themselves in educational workshops, visited an information-packed exhibit hall, and attended motivational keynotes on a broad range of business topics.
Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda, Inc. is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) education association with a quarter million members and advisers in over 6,500 active middle school, high school, and college chapters worldwide. Its mission is to bring business and education together in a positive working relationship through innovative leadership and career development programs. The association is headquartered in Reston, Va. For more information, visit www.fbla-pbl.org.
A group of business students and faculty represented Ozarks at the FBLA-PBL National Leadership Conference in Nashville in June.
Topics: Student Organizations