Following the FCCLA Regional Star Competition that took place on January 29th, Morgan McCart (12) and Melisa Boatman (11) both received gold awards in their individual events, advancing them on to the state level competition. The FCCLA Missouri State Leadership Conference took place in Jefferson City from March 22nd through March 24th. McCart received a silver award for her Teach and Train project while Boatman also received a silver award for her Job Interview project.

Before competing, McCart and Boatman prepared each of their projects prior to the Conference. “To prepare for my project I looked at the judges comments and tips from my regionals project, so I could fix all of the mistakes when preparing for state,” McCart said. She also followed the project rubric to make sure that she had all of the required elements. McCart competed in the Teach and Train category against five other schools. Boatman worked for three weeks in class to prepare her portfolio. “I also spent most of my time out of school trying to perfect it”, Boatman commented. In Boatman’s category, there was a total of ten other students from around Missouri who competed alongside her.

Overall, McCart and Boatman both did very well and enjoyed competing at the Conference. During the first night there, they heard from motivational speakers, one of which was former Ohio State football player Joel Penton. “I loved state. It was so fun and such a great learning experience. I got to connect with new people and go to different sessions and listen to people give speeches”, McCart commented. Boatman agreed, saying, “I loved being there! We had wonderful sessions we could attend and it was nice meeting a few new people”, She also added that going to the State Leadership Conference was definitely her favorite part of FCCLA this year.

In addition to McCart and Boatman being the two Fair Grove students who competed at the Leadership Conference, FCCLA members Taylor Sandridge (11) and William Martin (9) also went to the Conference to volunteer during the event.

For future FCCLA members who may be interested in preparing projects to go to competition with, Boatman advises them to not be scared or nervous. “Try your best and you’ll still be a winner to all of us”, Boatman comments. McCart adds,“I encourage anyone to get involved in FCCLA, it is an amazing club that offers so many great things that students are able to be a part of.”