Webber Students Dominate Future Business Leaders of America District Competition.

In an amazing display of business acumen, a group of Webber International University students recently swept virtually every top honor in District III Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) competitions.

The group of 17 Webber International University (Webber) students and their

advisor, Associate Professor of Accounting Dr. Joanne Muniz, traveled to UCF/Valencia

Downtown Orlando to compete in the event, which featured 30 categories. Collectively the local group earned 29 first place, 15 second place, and

three third place awards in competitions which included presentations and objective exams.

Representing Webber at Districts as teams were Isaiah Paige & Emelie Neidenmark, who

competed in Digital Media, receiving second place; Elias De Jesus & Jonathan Vega, who also

competed in Digital Media, receiving third place.

Andrea Acuna & Bryce Gerber created a

presentation in Social Media Marketing, receiving first place, while Ellora Santiago & Lauren

Dombroski competed in an objective test and presented in the subject of Business Decision

Making. Other presenters included Reynold Rey, who received first place in Impromptu

Speaking, Ellora Santiago, who achieved first place in Job Interview, Katy-Rose Hill, who

received first place in both Business Ethics and Global Business Analysis & Decision Making,

Andrea Acuna, who placed first in Marketing Analysis & Decision Making, and Seth Harper

who placed first in Future Business Executive.

Webber also did well in this year's objective tests which included the topics of Accounting

Principles (Natalie Bartek, 1st place, and Paysee Crow, 2nd place); Accounting for Professionals

(Paysee Crow, 1st); Business Communications (Caitlin Capozucca, 1st, and Katy-Rose Hill, 2nd);

Business Ethics (Katy-Rose Hill, 1st, and Daniel Bedoya, 2nd); Computer Concepts (Isaiah Paige,

1st); and Cost Accounting (Seth Jones, Jr, 1st); Cyber Security (Chase Muniz, 1st, and Caitlyn

Chapman, 2nd);

Competition in the category of Entrepreneurship Concepts also fell to Webber students as Eduardo Garcia earned 1st. Financial Concepts (Jonathan

Vega, 1st); Insurance Concepts (Nicole Greene, 1st); Information Management (Nicole Greene,

1st, and Paysee Crow, 2nd); Justice Administration (Caitlin Capozucca, 1st, and Caleb Balado,

2nd); Macroeconomics (Daniel Bedoya, 1st, and Elias De Jesus, 2nd) were other areas dominated.

Other wins came in Management Concepts (Nicole Greene, 1st, and Seth Harper, 2nd); Marketing Concepts (Caitlin Capozucca, 1st, and Seth

Jones, Jr., 2nd); Microeconomics (Reynold Rey, 1st, Jonathan Vega, 2nd, and Seth Harper, 3rd);

Networking Concepts (Isaiah Paige, 1st, and Natalie Bartek, 2nd); Organizational Behavior &

Leadership (Eduardo Garcia, 1st); Personal Finance (Chase Muniz, 1st); Project Management

(Caitlyn Chapman 1st, and Payee Crow, 2nd); Retail Management (Natalie Bartek, 1st, and Caitlyn

Chapman, 2nd); and Sports Management & Marketing (Emelie Neidenmark, 1st, Seth Jones, Jr.,

2nd, and Chase Muniz, 3rd).

Having qualified at Districts, the students will be competing in the State Leadership Conference

to be held over March 17-20 in Orlando. Students from around the state of Florida will be in

attendance as Webber tries to maintain their hold of first, second, and third places in these

presentations, performances, and objective tests. Students will also enjoy networking

opportunities with other PBL students as well as partaking in business tours with select

companies across Orlando. Besides competing in these events, students also design both student

and community events throughout the academic year.

University President and CEO Dr. H. Keith Wade commebnted that "It's all about knowledge, skills, and

execution. At the end of the day, it's a bunch of students in a room, head-to-head, showing what

they have learned and how they can apply that knowledge. It's just an incredible reflection of the

hard work and devotion of our students and our faculty and we just could not be prouder."

The collegiate arm of Future Business Leaders of America, Future Business Leaders of America Phi Beta Lambda, administers The National Awards Program, also known as competitive events, which recognizes and rewards excellence in a broad range of business and career-related areas.

PBL competitive events also prepare college students for the workforce by expanding their

classroom experience with real-world scenarios.

Established in 1927 by Roger Babson as the first college chartered under Florida's then new

charitable and educational laws, and America's second school of business for women, Webber's

campuses in Babson Park, FL (residential); Charleston, SC; Charlotte, NC; Columbia, SC;

Laurinburg, NC (residential); and Pinehurst, NC now educate men and women from over 50

different nations. Degrees are offered at the associates, bachelors, and masters level through

traditional day, accelerated night and weekend, and entirely on-line formats.

Joining Webber as a branch campus in 2011, St. Andrews University is an historically Presbyterian, comprehensive

liberal arts school tracing its roots back to 1896. The University features highly qualified faculty,

highly engaged staff, small class size, and a wide array of intercollegiate sports and other

extracurricular activities. The University has been recognized as a US News and World Reports

Best Regional Colleges: South, a Princeton Review Best Southeastern College, has earned

Petersons' top marks for academics, value and community, and has been designated a Military

Friendly School. The University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and

Schools Commission on Colleges, and numerous programs have earned additional programmatic

accreditations.