WOODFORD COUNTY MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS in Family, Career and Community Leaders of America participated in the State Leadership Conference, with top two finishes in each category moving on to the national competition in Washington, D.C., later this summer. Pictured are: front row, Marcy Herbst, Dori Hudson, Harmony Gampper and Addie Farmer; back row, Resse Willis, Leah Turpin, Natalie Basanta, Hadley Hird, Whitney Wellman, Kash Gould and Aiden Gould. (Photo by Olivia Wright)

By Scott White

Woodford Sun Staff

The members of the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) Club at Woodford County Middle School attended the organization’s State Leadership Conference in Louisville, March 25 to 27. This program is a Students Taking Action with Recognition (STAR) program.

“The best part of STAR Events is seeing our students step outside of their comfort zones to help others. Even without a trophy, the true ‘win’ is the project itself,” said Olivia Wright, WCMS’s Family and Consumer Sciences teacher. “The way students advocate for change, help a local business, positively impact their school or serve their neighbors. Every student is leaving this experience with more confidence than they had a month ago because they saw firsthand that their work makes an impact.”

This year, the student projects included: advocating for a safe surrender dog box for local areas, to include a fundraising mechanism; teaching lessons to students at Northside and Southside elementary schools about belonging/bullying; baking cookies and delivering to Daisy Hill Senior Living to spend time with the residents ;researching everything it takes to start a small business that sells redesigned clothing patterns from different decades; repurposing an old baby bed frame and compact discs to build a bookshelf; preparing shepherd’s pie from scratch with locally grown ingredients; and promoting their FCCLA Chapter at WCMS by hosting many events at the school.

Seven of the students competed in FCCLA’s STAR Event Competition, in which members compete at the regional/district, state and national levels. Students are recognized for proficiency and achievement in chapter and individual projects, leadership skills and career preparation.

There are more than 30 STAR Events which the students can choose to compete in, all of which recognize participants who demonstrate their knowledge, skills and abilities to actively identify an issue concerning families, careers or communities. The students research the topic and develop and implement a project to advocate for positive change.

The following students placed in the top two of their categories and have earned an invitation to compete at the National competition in Washington, D.C., later this summer:

1st Place: Promote and Publicize FCCLA – Kash Gould & Aiden Gould – Gold Medal Score

1st Place: Say Yes to FCS – Natalie Basanta – Silver Medal Score

2nd Place: Public Policy Advocate – Dori Hudson, Harmony Gampper, Leah Turpin – Silver Medal Score

2nd Place: Entrepreneurship – Whitney Wellman – Silver Medal Score

Additionally, five WCMS students competed in the FCCLA Knowledge Bowl, a fast-paced academic competition focused on Family and Consumer Sciences. Students Hadley Hird, Addie Farmer, Marcy Herbst, Kash Gould, and Aiden Gould secured second place statewide.

“We wish our students congratulations and best of luck at Nationals,” said Wright.