Small town schools only compete nationally in school activities in movies and books. Montoursville school district, however, overturned this idea and made going to the national level for FBLA a reality.
The Montoursville Sales Presentation team waits on stage to hear their placement and to receive their plaques. Photo by Mrs. Linda Keiser
At the state level competition, students who made it in the top four places qualified for the national level. The team of juniors Rebecca Teffeteller and Rowan Fortin and sophomore Christian Berwanger got fifth place in the Sales Presentation category.
“We found out about going to nationals after the awards ceremony, so I wasn’t expecting it entirely,” said Fortin. “I was in anatomy class when [ Rebecca Teffeteller] and I got the call to go up to the library, so we figured we made it on the way up…”
The team qualified to go since another team that qualified before them dropped out.
“…In order to place in the top ten in the state, in any event, requires the drive and preparation that these students put into preparing for their event,” said FBLA advisor Linda Keiser.
The Sales Presentations walks off of the stage after receiving their plaques for fifth place. Photo by Mrs. Linda Keiser
During the final round, the team encountered a problem right before they presented- the wifi wasn’t working. This could have been the difference between qualifying for nationals or not for another team, but not for Montoursville.
“When the product didn’t work, we kind of just made [ the script] up as we went. We made sure to stay confident and get the rest of the presentation right,” said Teffeteller.
Being a part of a team going to nationals instead of just having a solo presentation adds to the amount of effort and honor put into the competition.
“It’s a mix of pride and responsibility and it motivates me to give my best effort since I’m not just representing myself,” said Berwanger. “My goal is to give the strongest and most confident presentation we’ve ever done. I want to walk out of the room knowing we gave everything we had.
Keiser expresses the importance of having these students succeed for the community by saying that it, “Strengthens local pride, builds support for education, and shows that young people are developing real-world skills that benefit everyone.”
The team holds their plaques right after stepping off the stage. Photo by Mrs. Linda Keiser
“I am beyond grateful that we had the opportunity to represent our school on the stage at states. I like to think we carried on a legacy from previous FBLA members who placed,” said Teffeteller. “I couldn’t believe we made it!”
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