Overview
Students from the Alma DECA chapter recently competed at the 2026 Arkansas State Career Development Conference, representing their school with excellence across a wide range of marketing, finance, hospitality, and entrepreneurship events. Their hard work, leadership, and preparation resulted in numerous awards, recognitions, and state-level honors.
Chapter Recognition
At the state conference, the Alma chapter earned multiple campaign and chapter-level distinctions through DECA, Inc.:
Thrive Level Membership Campaign
Thrive Level Promotional Campaign
Thrive Level Community Service Campaign
Thrive Level Innovations & Entrepreneurship Campaign
Thrive Level Advocacy Campaign
Gold Chapter / Thrive Level Recognition
These honors reflect the chapter’s commitment to leadership, service, and career readiness throughout the year.
Arkansas DECA Medalists
Alma students earned top placements in numerous competitive events at the state level with Arkansas DECA:
Accounting Applications Marketing: Reagan Thang – 3rd Place
Apparel and Accessories Marketing: Braelyn Holmes – 4th Place; Ruby Inman – 5th Place
Automotive Service Marketing: Chance Cummings – 4th Place
Business Operations Research: Brayden Peppas – 1st Place
Buying & Merchandising Team Decision Making: Lauryn Lincks & Rimini Zeigler – 2nd Place
Community Awareness, Project Management: Angel Martin & Virginia Skaggs – 2nd Place
Community Giving, Project Management: Mackenzie Ciampoli – 3rd Place
Finance Operations Research: Jay Patel & Lukas Todd – 1st Place
Financial Services Team Decision Making: Harrison Mills & Chase Wilson – 5th Place
Hospitality Operations Research: Cade Moore – 4th Place
Hotel and Lodging Marketing: Emma Ingram – 5th Place
Independent Business, Entrepreneurship: Graci Martin – 4th Place
Integrated Marketing Campaign – Event:
Maycee McCabe & Brooklyn Reid – 5th Place
Gabriel Johnson & Isaac Wald – 3rd Place
Jackson Mick – 1st Place
Integrated Marketing Campaign – Product: Riley Bender – 2nd Place
Integrated Marketing Campaign – Service:
Ethan Barber – 1st Place
Daniel Rodriguez – 4th Place
Lydia Marts – 6th Place
Personal Financial Literacy: Lilian Yones – 6th Place
Principles of Business Administration: Gabe Huff – 6th Place
Principles of Finance: Zoie Wald – 6th Place
Principles of Hospitality & Tourism: Nora Dean – 4th Place
Retail Merchandising Marketing: Dylan Martinez – 6th Place; Caden Khantharinh – 4th Place
Sales Project, Project Management: Jackson Ball – 1st Place
Sports & Entertainment Operations Research: John Butler – 2nd Place
Sports & Entertainment Marketing: Jonathan Wald – 2nd Place
Virtual Business – Accounting:
Round 1 State Winner: Daniel Rodriguez
Round 2 State Winner: Jay Patel
Emerging Leader Honor Award Recipients
The following students were recognized for outstanding leadership and dedication: Brayden Peppas, Lukas Todd, Graci Martin, Mackenzie Ciampoli, Jay Patel, John Butler, Jonathan Wald, Brynlee Whitworth, and Braden Kimes.
CTE Completers in Marketing/Management
Students completing the Career and Technical Education pathway include: Braden Kimes, Allison Ames, Kevin Franco, Brayden Peppas, Ezekiel Kaiser, Jay Patel, Brynlee Whitworth, Lukas Todd, Mackenzie Ciampoli, John Butler, Graci Martin, Virginia Skaggs, and Angel Martin.
Alma DECA Honor Cord Graduation Recipients
The following seniors earned DECA Honor Cords in recognition of their commitment and achievement: Braden Kimes, Brynlee Whitworth, Kevin Franco, Brayden Peppas, Allison Ames, Mackenzie Ciampoli, Ezekiel Kaiser, Lukas Todd, Graci Martin, Angel Martin, John Butler, Virginia Skaggs, and Jay Patel.
Celebrating Excellence
The success of the Alma DECA chapter at the 2026 State Career Development Conference highlights the strong culture of leadership, innovation, and career readiness at Alma High School. These students demonstrated professionalism, teamwork, and academic excellence while representing their school and community at the state level.