Once a year, Xavier High School students can compete in a business leadership conference in Iowa and this year it has gone all online.  

From Monday, February 1 to Monday, February 15, students from Xavier participated in Iowa’s Business Professionals of America, also known as BPA, State. BPA is a program that gives students the opportunity to better their skills in professional, civic, service and social situations. The 28 Xavier participants had the opportunity to take part in events, such as interviews, presentations, tests and speeches and competed against other students. 

Last February, in times before the pandemic, BPA students were able to go to Des Moines and compete in in-person events for state. Unfortunately, this year, BPA’s state event was digitized. Students performed non-live events, along with live events virtually and were able to still be connected with the moderators. 

Mrs. Amanda Allard is in charge of the Xavier students involved with BPA. It is her first year as the business teacher and her job is to make sure the students are prepared and ready for their events. 

Allard was disappointed that state had to be online and she said that it is not fun to miss the trip and the fun that comes with it but is glad that they are still able to have the event. She and the students have been working non-stop to get ready for their competitions. 

“I am impressed with how hard these kids have been working. We’ve been working over the weekends and on snow days running though projects. They have been putting in a lot of time and effort into having well prepared events to take to state,” Allard said. 

Carlee Netolicky, a junior at Xavier, participated in BPA this year. She took part in two competitions, which were the Interview Skills and Fundamental Word Processing events.

“I’m happy to be involved in BPA for the first time this year. I think it was a great experience, especially because I am interested in working in business one day,” Netolicky said. “One of the events I participated in was Interview Skills. This event gave me a better understanding of the importance of a first impression and what employers look for. I believe that what I’ve learned will really benefit me in the future.”

For those wishing to participate in the Iowa Business Professionals of America program next year or to learn more about the program, contact the Business Department at Xavier or visit http://iowabpa.net.