Three members of the Muscatine Community College BPA club traveled to Des Moines to attend the Business Professionals of America State Leadership Development Conference this October. These BPA members joined with more than 100 other Iowa postsecondary students in personal and professional growth and team-building activities.
Students attended business meetings, practiced techniques to use when pitching business ideas, learned about personal credit ratings and future financial considerations and were presented with techniques to use when searching for and obtaining employment. Enjoyed motivational speaker and musician Jake Ballentine, who presented a teambuilding and leadership workshop. Students discovered new insights into the individual contributions that members make to the overall effectiveness of a team. Students enthusiastically stated that “it was a great experience,” and they “enjoyed the networking experience.”
After the conference adjourned, the students and their advisors toured Kinze Manufacturing, Inc. world headquarters in Williamsburg, IA. This 160-acre campus and office complex designs and builds solutions for farmers. Kinze specializes in producing planters and grain carts; however, their custom work often leads to product improvement after understanding customer needs.
Business Professionals of America is the premier CTSO (Career and Technical Student Organization) for students pursuing careers in business management, information technology, finance, office administration and other related career fields. The organization’s activities and programs complement classroom instruction by giving students practical experience through application of skills learned in the classroom. The organization contributes to the preparation of a world-class workforce through the advancement of leadership, citizenship, and academic and technological skills.
The students were accompanied by their advisors, Angela Henning and Corey Frad, instructors in the Information Technology and Accounting programs at MCC. Any student, regardless of major, seeking to participate in professional, civic, service, and social endeavors should contact Angela (ahenning@eicc.edu), Corey (cfrad@eicc.edu), or any advisor at Muscatine Community College.
