VHS FCCLA Is Golden at State Conference

Courtesy of Vidalia City Schools

The Vidalia High School Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) attended the State Leadership Conference in Athens, March 23-25, and left with Denver, Colorado, on their minds. The VHS chapter competed in 4 events and walked away with 4 gold medals, which will send 5 students to National Conference in Colorado's capital city this summer. A gold medal is given for scores of 90 and above.

Kingston Ryals, Hillaree Hankerson, and Sanaya Lewis placed first for their Entrepreneurship Project, in which they created a business named 'Beauty & Soul,' an African-American owned business that creates a safe place for individuals to receive counseling and hair care at the same time. Cristal Franklin placed first for her Chapter Service Project, titled 'Picnic at the Farm.' Cristal hosted an event that took place at Pittman Family Farms with the intent of encouraging children in our community to eat fresh fruits and vegetables.

Saylor Herrin placed first with a perfect score of 100 in her Food Innovations Project, which featured 'Protein Packed Cookies.' She created two cookies with the high school athlete in mind. The flavors she created were “Blueberry Madness” and “Snickerdoodle.”

Mikayla Stovall also received a gold medal for placing third in her Career Investigation Project, which focused on an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) career.

Georgia Meredith also represented VHS at the State Conference as a student presenter for a workshop held during the event. She taught other chapters how to run a successful student-led club with her “Little Feathers Running Club” in mind.

Ryals, Hankerson, Lewis, Franklin, and Herrin, will now advance to the National Conference, which will be held in July. VHS FCCLA Advisor Amanda Mosley beamed as she talked about the accomplishments of her students. 'Each of these students put forth a tremendous amount of effort to achieve their goal of advancing to the National Competition this summer. It was an honor to watch them put in the work and be rewarded for their excellence. I'm one proud adviser to be able to work with these amazing students!'