News

CHELMSFORD, Massachusetts (March 5, 2025) – The Chelmsford High School DECA Chapter returned home triumphant on Saturday, March 1, from the 66th annual Massachusetts DECA State Career Development Conference (SCDC) in Boston, with six students qualifying for the International Career Development Conference (ICDC) in Orlando, Florida.

In total, 21 Chelmsford students joined over 4,000 students, advisors and business professionals for the three-day conference to compete in over 50 categories of marketing, hospitality, finance and entrepreneurship.

Chelmsford DECA earned seven medallions for a top score on the comprehensive exam or role play, seven Top-12 Finalist medallions and three State Champion trophies. The State Conference theme was “Chart Your Course.”

Chelmsford students recognized for their Top Performance on the Comprehensive Exam, Role Play 1 or 2 were:

• Senior Pranav Abburi, Accounting Applications Series: Role Play 1 and Role Play 2
• Seniors Matthew Mei and Matthew Sliman, Financial Services Team Decision Making: Role Play 1
• Senior Arvind Rao, Business Financial Services: Exam Score
• Junior Ethan Jiang, Professional Selling Event: Exam Score
• Sophomore Micah Thoren, Sports and Entertainment Team Decision Making: Exam Score
  

  The Chelmsford High DECA Team at the BCEC in Boston before Opening Sessions of the SCDC.

State Finalists (Top 12) and ICDC Alternates, are:

• Senior Pranav Abburi, Accounting Applications Series
• Senior Arvind Rao, Business Finance Series
• Junior Pranav Ajmera, Hospitality and Tourism Professional Selling
• Junior Vinay Muruga, International Business Plan: Sebago Watersports
• Juniors Shivansh Badola, Pranav Sambasivan and Daksh Santhosh, Independent Business Plan: Truvestr

State Champions and ICDC Qualifiers are:

• Junior Pranav Ajmera, Hospitality and Tourism Professional Selling (Second Place)
• Senior Arvind Rao, Business Financial Services (Second Place)
• Senior Pranav Abburi, Accounting Applications Series (Seventh Place)

Additionally, Chelmsford High School earned three allocations for the prestigious Leadership Development Academy at ICDC in Orlando through Chapter Campaigns on the state level. Any DECA member can apply for one of the leadership spots to gain skills that they will bring back to our school and prepare them to be leaders in the future.

DECA is a co-curricular organization of high school students that builds transferable skills for college and career with over 200,000 members in all 50 states, four U.S. territories, Canada, Mexico, Germany, Korea and more. DECA helps students develop skills for successful careers, builds self-esteem, provides leadership opportunities, and stresses community involvement and service.

The Chelmsford program is led by Andy Shupe, DECA Advisor & Business Teacher, and Tom Sousa, DECA Advisor & Business Teacher. DECA is supported by the Lions Locker School Store.

To learn more about DECA, visit www.deca.org and www.madeca.org.

About Chelmsford Public Schools

The Chelmsford Public School District provides all students with multiple pathways to optimize their own potential for academic excellence, leadership, and social and emotional wellness. The mission of the Chelmsford Public Schools is to educate, engage, prepare, and empower well-rounded and knowledgeable learners to PERSEVERE through challenges, demonstrate RESPECT and INTEGRITY in their words and actions, are DEDICATED to their community, and display EMPATHY as global citizens while discovering and pursuing their full potential. This PRIDE-driven culture enables all members of the school community to support the growth and development of students. For more information, please visit www.chelmsfordschools.org.