Newtown High School Student Leadership Group

Places Second In The State

By Susan Coney

Members of the Newtown High School Future Business Leaders of America took second place in the 2006 State Leadership Conference and Competition held on Monday, April 10, at the Connecticut Grand Hotel in Waterbury. The team of students competed in individual as well as group events against students from 46 other school districts throughout the state.

Club advisors Pat Walsh and Melissa Robillard accompanied the group and stated that the Newtown students received second place in the state for the annual business report they created, which represented all of the work and activities the group participated in this past year. The report was a comprehensive, professional portfolio similar to that of an actual corporate annual business report.

Several of the students won individual as well as group awards in competitions dealing with skills used in the business world such as knowledge of business ethics, entrepreneurship, multimedia presentations, website development, creating business plans, accounting, communications, public speaking, and word processing.

Assessments varied according to the subject matter of the competition. Some students took detailed written tests, others were judged on performance job interviews, or their public speaking skills.

Sophia Cerreta, Chris Nuelle, Renee Rushefski, and Jon Zigman earned individual awards, allowing them to proceed to the national level. They, along with their advisors, will attend the 2006 National Leadership Conference and Competition, which will be held in Nashville from Thursday, June 29, through Sunday, July 2.