Contributed STATEWIDE HONOR — At the West Virginia Future Business Leaders of American state leadership conference earlier this year, state officer Savannah Wilkins presented the Chapter of the Year award to Brooke High School FBLA Adviser Chad Haught and officers Emma Riggs, Morgan McKinney, Hailey Buterbaugh, Lily Beecroft, Jania Jones, Josie Pennybacker, Ryan Haught and Lorelei Costlow.

WELLSBURG — It’s been a banner year for the Brooke High School chapter of Future Business Leaders of America, with the group named West Virginia Chapter of the Year, many members earning top scores at a state conference held in March in Kingwood and three competing in a national conference held in Anaheim, Calif., June 29 through July 2.

Chad Haught, the club’s adviser, said it was named West Virginia Chapter of the Year for providing significant community service and earning achievements at the local, state and national levels.

The chapter also received the Gold Seal Chapter Award of Merit, which recognizes outstanding local chapters that have actively participated in projects and programs in keeping with FBLA goals.

Chapters must be nominated by the state leader, who can select two chapters.

It also was named a Gold Champion chapter, a national honor bestowed upon chapters that have demonstrated consistent effort, outstanding teamwork and successful execution of initiatives that have positively impacted their school and community.

Haught said this year’s community service projects included recruiting teachers to have a pie thrown into their face in exchange for a $25 donation; raising $1,000 for the Alzheimer’s Association; donating baskets with materials for eight infants in neonatal intensive care units; and collecting clothing for the school’s clothes closet for students in need.

The group also teamed with the Weir High School FBLA chapter to collect canned soup and other nonperishable food for local food pantries at a Brooke-Weir basketball game.

Drawing on students in various academic programs, the club also is one of the school’s most popular extracurricular activities.

With 170 members, it was West Virginia’s largest FBLA chapter for the fourth consecutive year.

The top four finalists in competitions covering a wide variety of business-related skills at each state FBLA leadership conference are eligible to compete in the national leadership conference.

This year, with support from the Brooke County Board of Education, Lorelei Costlow, Ryan Haught and Luke Haught went on to represent the school at the national event.

Costlow, the club’s president and treasurer of the West Virginia FBLA, had placed first at the state level for the business management report and local annual business report she delivered at the state conference.

The latter consisted of 17 pages, with photos, outlining the group’s many activities.

Ryan Haught had placed first in the state’s Accounting I competition, while Luke Haught placed fourth in a competition testing knowledge of hospitality and event management.

“It was just jam-packed with students from everywhere,” said Chad Haught, who noted competitors included students from each state as well as U.S. territories.

Haught and his students noted the conference center where it was held was the size of three football fields, with three escalators.

While in California, the three also visited Disneyland, Griffith Observatory and the Santa Monica Pier.

Though they chose not to attend the national conference, several Brooke FBLA students placed first in competitions at the state conference.

They included: Hailey Buterbaugh, for her community service project; Meah Doll, for her partnership with business project; Will Harvey, for marketing; Jacob High, for data analysis; Gabe Keener, for supply chain management; Ivy Myers, for Introduction to Event Planning; Josie Pennybacker, for accounting II; Onica Rushing, for future business educator; Gavin Scott, for data analysis; and Kayleigh Suddoth, for insurance risk management.

Other Brooke students finishing second, third of fourth at the state conference were: Kai Bowers, second for accounting I; Isaac Lanigan, second for economics; Elliot McDonald, second for human resource management and for visual design; Morgan McKinney, second for visual design; Riley Stein, second for help desk; Lily Beecroft, third for American enterprise project; Cooper Byers, third for public service announcement; Paige Henderson, third for sports and entertainment; Jayla Jeter, third for securities and investment; Jania Jones, third for American enterprise project; Kaylie Saniga, third for broadcast journalism and for supply chain management; Grace Spitak, third for public service announcement; Ruari Stoll, third for broadcast journalism; and Sophia Wilkerson, third for Introduction to Parliamentary Procedure and for Introduction to Social Media Strategies;

Ashton Blair, fourth for Introduction to information technology; Madison Burge, fourth for health care administration; Faith Farrell, fourth for securities and investment; Kennedy Guiddy, fourth for Introduction to business presentation; Elijah Lanigan, fourth for financial math; Emma Riggs, fourth for business law and for social media strategies; Marley Stotler, fourth for Introduction to business presentation; and Gunner Yost, fourth for Introduction to marketing concepts.

Chad Haught said the group’s success can be attributed to the hard work of its members and the strong leadership of its officers.

In addition to Costlow, the group’s 2024-25 slate of officers included: Josie Pennybacker, vice president; Morgan McKinney, secretary; Ryan Haught, treasurer; Emma Riggs, competitive events officer; Jania Jones, historian; and Andrew Murdock, parliamentarian.

Its community service project committee officers are Brayden Farrell, Sophia Cecchini, Hayley Buterbaugh, Taylor Powell and Lily Beecroft.

Haught noted that each year the club holds a powderpuff football competition in which they play, officiate and work the concession stand to raise funds for its various activities and community service projects.

“We’ve had a lot of success. The kids have really taken a hold of it,” he said.

(Scott can be contacted at wscott@heraldstaronline.com.)