Of the 60 students that Wareham High School sent to DECA's State Career Development Conference in Boston from March 6-8, 35 returned with competitive event certificates of excellence, nine received a first, second, or third place medallion, 15 were finalists in their categories, and four students advanced to the International Career Development Conference in Georgia.

DECA, which stands for “Distributive Education Clubs of America,” helps students build knowledge in marketing and hone the skills needed for a strong business background. Students qualified for the state competition following the district conference in Falmouth in January, and joined 2,000 students from throughout Massachusetts at the state conference.

Sophomore Paige Fehskens and junior Teddy Mathews took home first-place overall awards that qualified them for the International Career Development Conference, which is scheduled for May 2-8 in Atlanta.

Also qualifying for the international conference were sophomore Erica Trask, who earned a second-place overall award, and junior Cory Harunkiewicz, who earned a forth-place overall honor.

"The Wareham DECA Chapter did a fabulous job representing their families, WHS, the Town of Wareham, and District 1 DECA," said DECA advisor Cindy Sylvia.