Knox County Career Center (KCCC) students competed in the Business Professionals of America (BPA) State competition held in Columbus, Ohio, on March 7 and 8. 

KCCC had six students qualify for nationals in the BPA State competition. The six national qualifiers from KCCC will have the option to compete in the BPA National Leadership Conference in Chicago, Illinois May 10-14. 

Jacob Spaulding, a junior in CollegeU-Business, won first place in Business Law and Ethics. Kaleb Randall, Will Stemen, Madison Wind, Brookelyn Yoder, and Kaylee Anderson, seniors in Pre-Professional Mentorship, won third place in Parliamentary Procedure. These six students qualified for the BPA National Leadership Conference. 

KCCC also had several students who placed at the BPA State competition. Tanner Nutter, a junior in CollegeU-Business, placed fourth in Ethics and Professionalism. Laura Page, a junior in CollegeU-Business, placed fourth in Entrepreneurship. Isaiah Campbell, Carter Thompson, Sami Lackonen, and Taylor Thorne, juniors in CollegeU-Business, placed fifth in the Financial Analyst Team. Ellie Hatfield, Taylor Bryant, Julia Partington, and Makaya Frazier, seniors in CollegeU-Business, placed fifth in the Global Marketing Team. Jack Davis, a senior in Digital Media & Software Development, placed sixth in Fundamentals of Desktop Publishing. William Hoeksema, senior in Computer Network Technology, placed eighth in Network Administration using Cisco. Ella Marofsky, a senior in Pre-Professional Mentorship, placed tenth in Presentation Management Individual. 

BPA is a career technical student organization that allows students to compete in various competitions in the areas of Finance, Business Administration, Management Information Systems, Digital Communications and Design, Management, Marketing and Communications, and Health Administration. 

The mission of BPA is to develop and empower student leaders to discover their passion and change the world by creating unmatched opportunities for learning, professional growth, and service. As a co-curricular organization, BPA has the ability to enhance student participation in professional, civic, service, and social endeavors. BPA members participate in these activities to accomplish their goals of self-improvement, leadership development, professionalism, community service, career development, public relations, student cooperation, safety, and health.