Recently RVHS students Walker Coulter and Jeeps Matya competed at the National FCCLA Leadership Conference in San Diego. Walker received a gold medal and first in the nation in the instructional video category. Jeeps received a silver medal in the professional presentation category.
One of the highlights of every summer national leadership conference is the election of new officers. Only 10 National Officers are elected each year from all 50 states. Two of the new national officers are from Kansas, a rare occurrence indeed! Rene Cabera from Seaman High School was from our own FCCLA District E-West. Kate Coulter from Eureka was also elected. Walker was privileged to get the opportunity to meet and talk with our new national president, Mary Katherine Gunn from Alabama several times before she was elected. The chance to meet and get to know so many different leaders from all over the United States was a particular highlight for Walker.
One of Jeeps' favorite sessions was the RED Talk “In 20 Years, I’m Going to Be…” Jeeps commented about the session leader, “She talked about what to do if you don’t have a plan for after school and how she worked her way to find her job years after graduation. She also talked a lot about how to set plans that would allow you to bend and stuff but also that wouldn’t limit you so much on choices.”
Touring the Air & Space Museum as well as seeing the Spiderman exhibit were among their favorite side excursions. It was also fun and educational to visit the San Diego Zoo with new friends. A couple of Jeeps’ newest friends include their otters.
FCCLA advisor Monique Litherland also participated at the national conference in a different way than the students. She presented to numerous other advisers during the Adviser Networking Round-Tables session demonstrating interactive notebooks, how they were used in class and how FCCLA is integrated into her classroom.
The conference provided Royal Valley members opportunities for listening to inspiring speakers, attending youth workshops, competing on the national level, and networking with other youth leaders. The theme of this year’s conference was “Make It Count,” which inspired attendees to share how they make it count while exploring career opportunities, developing leadership skills, and growing personally while making a difference in their families and communities.
“We are thrilled to have an attendance of over 7,000 members, advisers, corporate partners, and guests who are committed to discovering the unlimited possibilities available through FCCLA. The relationships and skills developed during this conference have inspired students to make a difference in their own communities and to make every moment count,” said Sandy Spavone, Executive Director of Family, Career and Community Leaders of America.
Students from Royal Valley represented their school and state in an exemplary fashion. Walker received a gold medal and 1st place in the nation with his event “Instructional Video." Walker explained, “Not only am I overjoyed with the outcome of my video, I’m pleased to know that my video is going to be shown in different states as well. This was the ultimate leadership experience and I’m proud to bring home 1st place title and a gold medal.”
“I would really like to thank everyone for their support. So many people helped from participating in fundraisers, letting students present in classes, giving constructive feedback and the constant encouragement to persevere. In particular, Jeeps' mother (Amanda Matya) and Walker's mother (Jennifer Kent), were amazing! Not only did they make much of the food for the fund-raising, they attended the conference as well and participated in the sessions. I couldn’t ask for better sponsors! Thanks to the support of everyone, we were able to “Make It Count” in San Diego!” reflected Mrs Litherland.
