Recent Knox Central graduate Austin Doolin earned his way into the spotlight at this year’s national conference of Future Business Leaders of America.
For the past four years Doolin has placed and advanced in regional and state competitions, but until last week never made it on to the big stage at the national conference. Doolin’s continued perseverance paid off on Sunday, June 30, when he walked away with sixth place honors in the computer problem solving event.
“We are very proud of Austin for achieving this recognition,” said Frank Shelton, career and technical education coordinator for the district and former FBLA advisor.
“Austin has been an asset to Knox Central, often helping teachers solve technical problems in their classrooms,” said Shelton. ” This award is very fitting for him given his knowledge and expertise. We wish him continued success in the future as he utilizes his talents and continues to grow in this career area.”
The computer problem solving event consisted of an objective test that focused on personal computer components, laptop and portable devices, operating systems, printers and scanners, networks, security, and safety and environmental issues. The national conference was held in Anaheim, California.
Doolin will be attending Eastern Kentucky University this fall where he plans on pursuing a major in computer sciences.
Also competiting at the national FBLA competition was Christopher Gibson, a rising junior at Knox Central. Gibson was a national finalist in the spreadsheet applications event, but did not place in the top ten. Gibson had previously placed at FBLA’s regional and state competitions in order to advance to nationals.
In the spreadsheet applications competition, Gibson was required to complete various spreadsheets that were based on a variety of simulated business documents. An objective test was also completed on-site that demonstrated his knowledge of Microsoft Excel including basic mathematical concepts, data organization concepts, how to utilize data by creating formulas, using functions, generating graphs for analysis purposes, use of pivot tables, creating macros, and filtering and extracting data.
Knox Central’s FBLA advisors are Virgena Rhodes and Renee Adams. Students who are interested in joining Knox Central’s chapter of FBLA and competing in various business and marketing competitions, or enrolling in business courses during the 2013-2014 school year, should contact the advisors for more information.
FBLA is the largest business career student organization in the world. The high school division has 215,000 members. FBLA-PBL’s National Awards Program recognizes and rewards excellence in a broad range of business and career-related areas. Through state-based competition at the spring State Leadership Conferences, students compete in events testing their business knowledge and skills. Top state winners then are eligible to compete for honors at the National Leadership Conference each summer.