Warren County DECA Students Earn Top Honors at State Competition

Warren County High School students have brought home major wins from the Virginia DECA State Leadership Conference in Virginia Beach. They proudly earned first place in their respective categories and secured a spot at the DECA International Career Development Conference in Orlando, Florida, this spring.

The winners include:

• Nathan Greenwell and Kaylee Presgraves – Financial Literacy Project

• Allie Musil and Alexa Bradley – School-Based Enterprise: Food Operations (DECA Tailgaters)

The students recently met with Mike McCool at the Wildcats Live Studio to discuss their experience and the hard work that led to their success.

Nathan Greenwell’s project focused on teaching financial literacy to fourth-grade students through an interactive activity designed to help kids understand how to manage money. Instead of traditional games, Nathan and Kaylee created a movie theater-style activity, giving students a set amount of play money to “purchase” concessions. The exercise taught them the importance of opportunity cost and smart spending.

“If they ran out of money, they had to put everything back and try again,” Nathan explained. “It helped them learn to make real choices with limited funds.”

The DECA Tailgaters team—Allie Musil and Alexa Bradley — competed in the School-Based Enterprise: Food Operations category, highlighting their student-run food business at Warren County High School. The team operated out of the Carolina Dreaming food truck, managing everything from menu planning and pricing to operations and customer service.

“We focused on market analysis,” said Allie. “We used data to understand our target audience and set our pricing to match.”

The students raised funds throughout the year by working school events and serving the community—all while gaining hands-on business experience.

When the winners were announced at the state conference, the students were stunned and thrilled.

“I was shaking,” Alexa said. “It didn’t feel real.” Allie said, “We knew we worked hard, but it was still a surprise.”

McCool, who also served as a judge at the event, praised the high quality of the students’ presentations. “These students didn’t just go through the motions—they put together full business plans, conducted analysis, and executed real operations,” he said. “Their work is on par with what you’d see from adult entrepreneurs.”

The DECA program prepares students for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management through real-world projects and competitive experiences. However, it also teaches life skills that go far beyond the classroom.

Nathan said one of the most meaningful parts of his project came after the presentation when he received letters from the fourth-grade students. “It really showed how much they learned,” he said. “Financial literacy is something kids need early, and I’m glad we could help.”

With the national competition in Orlando just weeks away, the students are continuing to fine-tune their presentations in hopes of placing among the top in the country. Warren County DECA has had previous national finalists, and this team aims to join those ranks.

If you’d like to support the program or learn more, visit the DECA website (linked below the article). Local businesses and community members are encouraged to get involved.

“These are tomorrow’s leaders,” said McCool. “And they’re already proving they’re ready today.”

The students plan to return to Wildcats Live after the national competition to share their results and reflect on their journey.