District IFuture Business Leaders of America

Ashley Callahan, Reporter October 4, 2006

Heath NanceDistrict I FBLA President

Greetings, District I FBLA!  I hope you are as excited about this upcoming school year as I am!  There are many changes occurring in FBLA this year that I know will make our association even better.  It is my goal as your District I State Vice President to increase local chapter member involvement in FBLA.  I challenge you to learn more about FBLA and gain the benefits that come with that--meeting new people, traveling to large cites, and most importantly, becoming a better person through the leadership opportunities that FBLA gives us.

I am currently a junior at Siloam Springs High School.  I am also a local officer in the SSHS FBLA chapter and am a leader in my church's youth group.  In addition, I participate in Big Brothers/Big Sisters and work at my father's local small business.  My main focus is FBLA and I am appreciative of the opportunities it has given me.  

Jesse Laakman

District I FBLA Vice President

My name is Jesse Laakman, and I am your District I V.P. I am currently a senior at Mena High School. During my four years in FBLA I have come to understand the purpose of this organization. To me FBLA doesn’t only stand for Future Business Leaders of America, but for Any Future Leaders of America. FBLA is an organization that helps you stand out in your school and community as the futures best and brightest. FBLA helps you build leadership, communication, teamwork, and problem solving skills. These skills are used in everyday lie. Let’s face it: everyone wants to be a good leader and communicator. As District I V.P. I hope to allow you to do that by making these skills easier and more fun to learn.

Jacob CrosbyDistrict I FBLA Secretary

Hello, my name is Jacob Crosby and I am honored to serve as your District Secretary for the 2006-2007 school year. I am 16 years old and a junior at Charleston High School. I have been in FBLA for three years and am Vice-President of my local chapter. My favorite subjects in school are business, math, and science. I am involved in many activities including Spanish Club; the local 4-H; Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA); Junior/Senior Prom Committee; the Tiger Yearbook Staff; the National BETA Club; and of course FBLA. FBLA has been a major part in my life the past few years. After high school, I plan to attend the University of Arkansas, Fort Smith and major in criminal justice or the health field.

I am very excited to have the opportunity to serve as your district secretary this year and I am looking forward to working with the rest of the officer team.

Amanda CrawfordDistrict I FBLA Treasurer

Hi! My name is Amanda Crawford. I am 17 years old and a senior at Southside High School in Fort Smith. I am excited to be your District I Treasurer for the 2006-2007 school year.

I have competed and attended the National Leadership Conference every year and have been a local officer since the 11th grade. I have taken several business classes such as Word Processing and Accounting I and II. I am also taking Business Law and Computer Applications.

I'm ready to get started on this exciting, promising year ahead of us. I'm glad I have the opportunity to be a part of this year's amazing officer team because I want to contribute to making FBLA the awesome experience it always has been. I have been involved in FBLA since I was a sophomore and I've love it since day one.

Kimberly Sayavongsa District I Parliamentarian

      Hi! My name is Kimberly Sayavongsa and I will be serving as your 2006-2007 District I Parliamentarian. I am currently a junior at Charleston High School and am

serving as my local chapter secretary. I’m also a member of Student Council, the Prom Committee, Beta Club, and class treasurer. After I graduate from high school, I would like to attend the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith for two years to get my associate in Business Administration. Then I would like to transfer to Schiller International University in Dunedin, Florida. I’ll do the best I can to be a great District I Parliamentarian because I’m excited about meeting the different people in FBLA.

Ashley Callahan,

District Reporter

I am Ashley Callahan your District 1 Reporter. I am currently a junior at Gravette High School and serve as V.P. Membership in my local chapter. This is my second year in FBLA and I am very excited. Last year I competed in District I Business Math. Upon graduation from high school I plan to attend NWACC to become a Psychologist/Accountant.

Thank you for your confidence in my ability in being your Reporter. I will strive to do the best I can do.

MARCH OF DIMESBy Heath Nance

Walt Disney, Lance Armstrong, Richard Branson, and Keira Knightley. What do all of these individuals have in common? All of them overcame a disability or challenge early in life on their way to success in their respective industries. The March of Dimes helps babies everyday overcome challenges and lead productive lives.

According to the March of Dimes, “Every year, more than 480,000 babies are born prematurely in the U.S. – many so small their lives hang in the balance. Premature birth is serious. It is the leading cause of newborn death and many life long disabilities.” Prematurity in babies has been escalating steadily and alarmingly over the past two decades. Between 1981 and 2003, the rate of premature births rose from 9.4 percent to 12.3 percent.

Preterm delivery can happen to any pregnant woman. The March of Dimes is taking on this devastating problem to find out what causes it and how it can be stopped. You may think that premature births don’t affect you, but they do. Birth defects and other adverse outcomes of pregnancy contribute significantly to the global toll of disease and disability. Building on its vast experience in prenatal health education, community intervention and advocacy in the United States, the March of Dimes is working to improve the health of mothers and babies worldwide.

Why should you help? Well, the March of Dimes is one of FBLA’s service projects and deserves our attention and support. Also, most of us will probably be parents (although we hope that will be much later on in life!) and have an interest in our future babies being born healthy. By strengthening the March of Dimes NOW, we help assure that our babies will be born healthy in the FUTURE. You, as an active local chapter FBLA member, can become more educated about March of Dimes by visiting their website at http://www.marchofdimes.com. I hope you will take the time to not only learn more about the March of Dimes, but also get your local FBLA chapter involved in support this worthwhile organization. Get educated and get involved in fighting premature births!

2006 NFLC in Denver, ColoradoBy Kimberly Sayavongsa

Hello fellow FBLA members! Would you like to know how to make the 2006-2007 school year exciting and interesting? One way would be to attend the 2006 National Fall Leadership Conference in Denver, Colorado on November 3 and 4. By attending the conference, you will meet fellow FBLA members, make new friends, hear outstanding speakers, attend workshops, and see local sites in other parts of the country. While in Denver, the Arkansas group has arranged to tour the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs and a trip on the Cog Railway to the top of Pikes Peak. What a fun and educational experience!

Hope to see you in Denver!

JUNIOR TOURS By Jacob Crosby

Junior Tours is the nation’s leader in upscale student educational tours at affordable prices. They offer you and your group almost 40 years of experience in planning educational tours. Their approach is to understand a group’s goals and expectations and then exceed them. This exclusive FBLA-PBL partner specializes in a New York City Wall Street Tour, which features visits to the

New York Stock Exchange, the Federal Reserve, NASDAQ, Times Square, and the Statute of Liberty. They also offer tours to Washington, D.C., Boston, Chicago, and Baltimore. For more information, visit www.juniortours.com. Start today and plan an entertaining and educational experience!

JOIN HANDS DAYBy Jesse Laakman

A problem with America today is a misunderstanding between the youth and adults. The purpose of JOIN HANDS DAY is to strengthen the communication between these two generations. JOIN HANDS DAY is the only nation day that is meant to help develop relationships between generations by volunteering together. Through volunteering together the two generation begin to understand and trust each other, along with helping the community. Through JOIN HANDS DAY generations learn from one another, and help to break preconceived stereotypes of each other. Partnerships begin to form. Partnerships that help bring youths into leadership roles in other organizations. For more information go to JoinHandsDay.org

ARKANSAS CHILDREN’S HOSPITALBy Amanda Crawford

The Arkansas Children’s Hospital is a non-profit, private, pediatric hospital. It is the only pediatric hospital in the state of Arkansas, and is one of the largest pediatric hospitals in the United States. There are more than 500 doctors on staff and 3500 member support staff. The hospital has total floor space of 1,200,000 square feet and extends over twenty-six city blocks. The hospital is licensed for 280 beds, and received more than 250,000 visits from children throughout the world just last year. The Arkansas Children’s Hospital also has the only Burn Center in Arkansas, which has the capacity to treat more than ten patients at a time. They treat over 200 severe burns every year in the burn center, and last year the average daily number of patients was about 10.5 patients.

This year, Arkansas FBLA will be fundraising to support the Arkansas Children’s Hospital ACHIEVE Center. The ACHIEVE Center is a center for pediatric medical simulation and clinical skills training. Medical simulation means that medical scenarios are simulated utilizing electronic computerized models or mannequins which respond in a realistic fashion to medical interventions. This type of simulation will allow students and employees to develop critical skills in a safe, supportive environment without harm to patients.

For more information about how your chapter can help Arkansas Children's Hospital, contact Ms. Tammy Cox at coxtm@archildrens.org.

CHANGES IN COMPETITIONSBy Ashley Callahan

Several changes have been made this year in the Competitive Event area of which everyone needs to be aware. The first is that in the events where the top five winners were eligible for state now the top six will be eligible; where the top two competitors were eligible for national now the top three are eligible. This makes for more competition at the state level and more eligible for nationals! Be sure to check the new Competitive Event section of the Chapter Management Handbook for all details.

There were nine events added to the list of competitions. Be sure to ask your advisor about these: Business Financial Plan, Cyber Security, Database Design and Applications, Digital Video Production, E-business, Electronic Career Portfolio, Global Business, Management Decision Making, and Spreadsheet Applications.

Some of these are On-site testing as well as a written test. Check with your advisor. CHARLESTON HIGH SCHOOL

The Charleston FBLA sets certain goals they would like to reach by the end of each school year. So far this year we have completed one of our goals, our annual FBLA Block Party. The Block Party was a great success. Students in grades 5 through 12 were invited. They were encouraged to participate in many activities, including volleyball, basketball, ultimate frisbee, football, and dance competitions. There were also many door prizes donated by the local businesses.

HARTFORD HIGH SCHOOL

Hartford FBLA sponsors their annual Veterans Day Assembly and their annual American Enterprise Assembly.

Community Service projects will include March of Dimes, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, and two Blood Drives for United Blood Services.

Hartford’s officers and members get numerous opportunities to sharpen their leadership skills through their many projects and activities.

MENA HIGH SCHOOL NEWS

On September 15th the Mena High School FBLA chapter consisting of sixty-four members held a meeting to discuss

their plans for the coming year. FBLA was privileged to have former state representative Steve Oglesby as their guest speaker. Oglesby spoke about what it was like to be a representative and the responsibilities involved with being so. Oglesby also spoke about never letting someone else tell you that you’re not capable of doing something, along with stressing that all students should try their hardest in school and life. Mena FBLA plans to be very active in the community this year by participating in numerous fundraisers including: March of Dimes, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, Heart Walk, and Special Olympics. Mena is also competing in a variety of events at the District Spring Leadership Conference. Officers for the 2006-2007 school year are Jesse Laakman, president; Toni Lindsey and Nick Tinnesz, co-vice presidents; Bethany Solomon, secretary; Olivia Padilla, treasurer; James Willard, reporter; and Amber Brewer, parliamentarian.

OZARK HIGH SCHOOL NEWS

           Ozark High School elected officers:  Pres.--Amber Acord, Vice-Pres.--Nicole McElhaney, Sec.--Jessica Hardy,  Treasurer--Jewell Via, and Reporter--Marisa Murders.   Scott Covert and Amber Lewis are in a run-off election for Student Council Representative.

            Our Adviser, Mrs. Suella Bratton, was honored at the National Leadership Conference in Nashville as the 2005-06 Arkansas Local Outstanding Adviser.  She received a $100 check from Jean McEntire, FBLA President & CEO and a clock and certificate from the Southern Region FBLA.  She has been an Ozark FBLA Adviser for 25 years.

ROGERS HIGH SCHOOL FBLA

FBLA officers for the 2006-07 school year are:President – Cristina Mayne-Nicholls, Vice President – Cassandra Arnhart, Secretary – Andrea Samuel, Treasurer – Stephen Ehret, Public Relations – Lauren Bright, Rebekah Bush, Brea Solomon, Parliamentarian – Derrick Dillard, Powder Puff Co-chairs – Amelia Wildenborg, Alyssa Egger, March of Dimes Co-chairs - Jordan Ganoung, Allie Ollinger, Sr. Representative – Edwin Velasco, Jr. Representative – Christy Gill.

On October 4 about 45 members and 2 advisors will be attending the Fall District I Conference in Fort Smith.

On October 27, we will be holding our 11th Annual Powder Puff Football games to benefit Arkansas Children’s Hospital. We hope to raise more than $1000 at that time.

The officer’s are already planning their vehicle decorations for the Homecoming Parade on October 13.

FBLA meets on the first club day (the first Tuesday of every month) at school. As of September 15, we already have at least 70 paid members. A slideshow and overview of the club was provided during the first club day to prospective members.

In July at the National Leadership Conference in Nashville, TN, Rogers High School participated in two national events. Caitlin Murphy, Blaire Larson, and Robert March, the Entrepreneurship Team won 1st in the state of Arkansas, and Jordan Difani, won 2nd in the state of Arkansas for International Business.

We are looking forward to a fantastic year! Our advisors are: Mrs. Kay Cole and Mrs. Diana Eikenberry.

SILOAM SPRINGS HS FBLA Local Chapter News

Siloam Springs High School FBLA had four members attend the FBLA National Leadership Conference this past summer in Nashville. Heath Nance, Emily Eaton, and Stephen Johnston placed fifth in the American Enterprise Project. Heath, Emily, Stephen, and Chris Ross were also recognized for their participation in the Business Achievement Awards at the conference.

SSHS FBLA has a full year planned. We will be hosting our business lunches each month and writing up the project for the Partnership With Business event. The chapter will also be planning events for American Enterprise Day on November 15. Several local chapter members will be attending the FBLA National Fall Leadership Conference in Denver, Colorado in November. We will also do fundraisers for the March of Dimes and Arkansas Children’s Hospital.