Benton Community has started year 2 of DECA at the High School. DECA is a business club where students attend leadership conferences and compete in business competitions. Last year we had 6 students compete at State DECA with one pair, Kayley Dirks and Hailey Suiter, earning honorable mention in the Start Up Business Plan competition.
This year we took 8 students to the leadership conference and 7 students competed in the district competition. Kayley Dirks and Belle Werner finished 2nd in the Finance Team event, Evan Patterson and Ava Kleinmeyer finished 4th in the Hospitality Team event, and Hailey Suiter finished 5th in the Food Marketing Individual event.
Our next event is the state competition which will be held on February 15, 2026 at Southeast Polk High School.