San Jose, California – Harker DECA hosted a Parent Night in the Nichols Atrium and Auditorium on October 16^th, 2014. This provided about 50 parents of students who do or plan to participate in DECA with more information about the conferences, what the students are doing, and opportunities for parental involvement. This information session was especially beneficial to freshman parents, which appeared to be the largest demographic in attendance.

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The night began with parents filing into the Nichols Atrium, where poster boards and computer screens were set up; this provided information about the different facets of DECA and Harker’s Business and Entrepreneurship Program. Officers welcomed parents, answered questions they had, explained the information on the screens and boards to them. Then, the event moved to the auditorium, where the presentation began.

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Mr. Glass, Harker DECA’s Advisor, was the first speaker, and he related information about Harker’s new Business and Entrepreneurship Program as a whole. After Savi Joshi, the Harker DECA CEO, and Chirag Aswani, the Vice President, discussed general information about the DECA and its conferences and gave the parents an overview of the events that students can compete in.

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In addition, there were a few guest speakers. One of these was Asha Chandra who spoke about her experiences as a judge at DECA Conferences. The goal was to convince more Harker parents to represent the Harker DECA Chapter at conferences as judges, helping parents see firsthand what their child is doing.

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The other speaker was Harker DECA alum and Wharton undergraduate Adarsh Battu, who discussed how DECA helped him find his passion in business, meet new people from around the world, and impact her decision to go to Wharton. 

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Afterwards, parents were able to ask Mr. Glass and the officer team questions as they left, and they were strongly encouraged to sign up as a judge for DECA Conferences as well as at Harker DECA’s Business Plan Review Day. The Business Plan Review Day simulates how an actual conference goes, where a judge reviews and scores the plans for Written Events and then judges the students’ presentations. This is an extremely beneficial and useful way to prepare for actual conferences, as students get a taste of the process before diving into it.

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Overall, the event was a huge success. The attendance, number of questions, and apparent interest were higher than ever. As the club expands, it is important to have more transparency, and it is key that parents have a solid understanding of DECA. After all, they are one of the most important groups that keeps the organization afloat.

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“The officers were able to network with the parents and answer any questions they had about DECA. I had a great time interacting with the parents. It’s always great to see their enthusiasm for our organization.” – Sophia Luo, Director of Written Events (11)

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“Parent night was a great experience for parents to get to know what their children are doing throughout the year. And of course, the food is good too!” – Jonathan Lee, VP of Operations (12)

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