Kayla Suherman is a junior at Glacier Peak High School in Snohomish, WA, and is delighted to serve both as Area 1’s 2023-2024 President and vice president of hospitality. With this being her third year in her chapter’s DECA program, she took home a first place medal at Area her second year, competing in the “Innovation Plan” and has always qualified for state. Through DECA, she has also developed knowledge about many options for future careers, colleges, and programs, and she plans to pursue business/technology informatics at the UW.

Outside of WA DECA, Kayla enjoys working in her school’s Den while attending Cascadia Community college. She also avidly serves as an youth intern for her church’s contemporary band, and has a growing love for everything related to music: she has trained in classical music and was a competitive pianist for years, plays the cello and loves learning new instruments, and has even picked up the skills of songwriting and production. Kayla also loves spending time with family and friends, whether it be hiking a trail, trying a new restaurant, or doing an escape room!

DECA has opened doors for Kayla to meet people from so many different walks of life, and she has created some of her favorite core memories at conferences: she hopes to make DECA an educational, interactive, and most of all, enjoyable experience for students. She is honored to have the wonderful opportunity of serving Washington and is excited to meet members and make an impact!

Devan Harrison is honored to serve Area 2, which he knows is the best Area in the State. Currently Devan attends Roosevelt High School as a Senior and this year is his 4th year being a DECA member. Throughout his High School career in DECA, Devan placed 1st at ICDC in the Virtual Business Challenge-Personal Finance and was awarded for scoring in the top 10% of competitors at ICDC on the finance exam. He has also competed at State in his first 3 years competing in a variety of events and placed 3rd in Financial Consulting last year!

Devan’s goals for DECA this year is to make competition more fun by adding games to Area and State conferences and improve the chances of success for Area 2 and all of Washington. Additionally, he plans on largely increasing the size of Area 2 – because it is the best – and creating a better way for new members to decide how they want to do DECA. He also encourages existing Area 2 chapters to work with him to make Area 2 even better.

Along with being the Area 2 president, Devan will also be the VP of Finance. Where he will work to help chapters across the state budget and manage their financials. In the future Devan wants to study Economics and minor in Finance or Data Science. He knows that his experiences in DECA have shaped who he is and hopes to share that with others.

Manya Pradeep Narayan is a junior at Eastlake High School, and is so excited to serve as the Area 3 President and Vice President of Career Development for the 2023 – 2024 season! She is a three-year DECA member that has competed in the Human Resources Management Individual Series Roleplay two times, placing first and second at state and fourth at ICDC. She has also won two testing medals at ICDC!

While Manya has gained a variety of professional skills through her competitive events, she has also taken on positions of leadership. At the school level, Manya has served as the Vice President of Communications and Outreach at Eastlake DECA. Manya is thankful for her strong community of support at Eastlake DECA, and is excited to make connections with DECA members across Washington!

Outside of DECA, Manya is an avid reader that is always ready to discuss books! She also loves traveling, teaching, and learning about new topics, such as her favorite animal, the mantis shrimp. In the future, Manya plans to study computer science at a university, get an MBA, and eventually own her own business.

Manya entered DECA as a nervous freshman with little knowledge about business, but through her DECA journey, she has learned about public speaking, confidence, and the importance of taking initiative. Now, Manya aims to utilize her position as an Area President and State Officer to further her mission of creating a positive, supportive, and inclusive environment that supports the DECA journey of every member.

Sidhya Ganesh is a senior at Interlake High School and is honored to serve as your Area 4 President and VP of Career Development. This is Sidhya’s third year of DECA, and she won 1st place at ICDC in Travel & Tourism Team Decision Making in 2022 as well as 1st place at ICDC for the Ethical Leadership Challenge in 2023. DECA has helped her discover her passion for business, and she hopes to study business/data analytics in college, and pioneer innovative and creative solutions in the corporate world in the future.

Outside of DECA, Sidhya has been dancing for the last 14 years and is the founder and CEO of her own Bollywood dance company which leverages AI insights to aid students. She is passionate about educating youth about the intersection of CS with fields such as dance and business and enjoys conducting interdisciplinary research that combines the natural sciences with the performing arts. One of Sidhya’s favorite pursuits is pageantry! Her most notable titles include Miss Teen India USA 2022 and Miss Teen Global Asia 2023, and she loves walking and modeling for fashion designers that promote sustainability and diversity in fashion.

Sidhya has thoroughly enjoyed being involved in the DECA community and looks forward to enabling you to accelerate your futures! She wishes you success in your pursuits and is excited to connect, empower, and lead you as the Washington DECA Area 4 President for the 2023-2024 academic year.

2023-2024 Area 5 President Avianca Bauer resides in Enumclaw Washington where she attends Enumclaw High School as a junior. Avianca has been a DECA member since her freshman year where she was quickly captivated by the benefits of DECA. She’s elated to be the 2023-2024 Area 5 President and Vice President of Hospitality.

Within DECA Avianca placed 2nd in her Quick Serve Restaurant Management (QSRM) Roleplay freshman year at her Area competition. She also qualified for International Career Development Conference through a School-Based Enterprise (SBE) with her incredible team! Not only has Avianca competed she’s also been quite engaged within the DECA community. She was recently a part of the 2022-2023 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Officer team and within her school’s chapter she was Vice President of Marketing her freshman year, and Vice President of Hospitality and Finance her sophomore year. But outside of DECA Avianca participates in the National Honor Society, FCCLA, HOSA, volunteering at her local clothing drive, and tennis, she is also part of the Junior Class Council where she recently was part of the Sophomore and Freshman class council.

Avianca’s life motto is Theodore Roosevelt’s famous quote “It is hard to fail, but is worse to never have tried to succeed” because she knows if she doesn’t always take the opportunities that are put in front of her she’ll regret not trying at all. Roosevelt’s quote helped Avianca distinguish if running for Area 5 President was truly something she wanted to do. Not only has the quote pushed her to run for Area 5 President but so has the 13,000 members of Washington DECA. Her goal as Vice President of Hospitality is to make a lasting impact that will help uproot the course of many Washington DECA members and help her set up her life course as she hopes to attend Tulane University to receive her bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and then proceed onto medical school so she can fulfill her career dream of becoming an OB-GYN.

Your new AREA 6 President and VP of Finance for Washington DECA for 2023 is Navaj Nune!

He joined DECA as a regular club member of the Hanford High School chapter in 2021. He grew from a regular member to an ICDC competitor (Atlanta; 2022) and is now a WA State Officer as the Area 6 President.

The experiences that he has in DECA have taught him the importance of hard work, dedication, and prepared him as a next generation leader. He is extremely grateful for his growth as a leader and entrepreneur as a member of WA DECA.

His future goals are to pursue his interest in medicine by attending a top-tier university and earning a medical doctorate degree and ultimately becoming a surgeon or radiologist.

DECA played an important role in preparing him for a professional life beyond high school. It also enabled him to gain 21st-century skills to be a next-generation leader and helped him make lifelong connections.

He is so thankful for everything that he learned from WA DECA, and as a State Officer, he will continue the tradition and help all members of this fantastic organization maximize their potential.

A senior attending Central Kitsap High School in Silverdale, Washington, Ferrah is the 2023-2024 Area 7 president and vice president of leadership. Ferrah joined DECA online during her freshman year. Now, she is a 3 time state qualifier, having placed 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place at area competitions, respectively, in the categories marketing management team decision making and entrepreneurship team decision making.

Ferrah loves to stay involved whenever she can, and has developed a passion for leading others, which moved her to apply for this position. She is very involved at school, as her DECA chapter’s president, National Honor Society president, executive ASB president, bowling team captain, and Asian American and Pacific Islander Club Vice President. Ferrah also loves attending concerts, and her go to boba drink is an iced matcha milk tea with tapioca!

In her future, Ferrah hopes to attend a 4 year university on the west coast, in engineering or business. She isn’t 100% sure of what she’d like to do, but she’ll do it with drive and dedication.

DECA has given Ferrah confidence and such an amazing community. Ferrah joined DECA to learn a few business terms, but through this organization she has gained enough confidence to stand up and speak on stage, present to a judge, and ask some random people from Puerto Rico if they’d care to trade pins. The community in DECA is so empowering, and Ferrah’s favorite part of DECA will always be networking and connecting with others, especially at conferences. Ferrah is beyond excited to work with DECA members and continue her DECA journey as Area 7 president!

Zach Song is a senior at Olympia High School and is so thrilled to be the Area 8 President for the 2023-2024 school year! This year is his third year in DECA and he has competed in Innovation Plan and Integrated Marketing Campaign-Event. Zach’s all-time favorite DECA events are competitions and he has been to both SCDC and ICDC in Orlando in 2023.

Outside of DECA, Zach is his varsity tennis team’s captain, president of Climate Action Club, leadership cabinet member of STAND (students together advocating for non-violence and diversity), and is an Olympia School District Equity Student Representative. Zach is also very passionate about trying new foods and drinks and continues to post his findings on his Instagram food account (@zach.foodie). On this account with over 2,500 followers, he’s honored to be brand ambassadors of various food companies and he hosts giveaways through restaurant partnerships. After trying so many restaurants and boba shops, Zach’s favorite restaurant is Din Tai Fung and boba tea is his favorite drink!

Zach wants to continue his education after high school in Southern California. Los Angeles is his favorite destination and his dream job is to open and own restaurants in this vibrant city. He enjoys making connections with new people and is always open to conversation! Zach’s goal as a state officer is to make Washington DECA a welcoming, positive, and exhilarating space for members and advisors. He strives to make everybody succeed and make this year amazing and fulfilling with WA DECA.

Jay is a Senior at Union High School, who is in his fourth year of DECA, and is excited to be serving as your Area 9 President and VP of Marketing. He has competed at SCDC twice- once in Professional Selling, and once in Buying & Merchandising Team Decision Making. He is passionate about business and marketing, and works to share that passion with his peers across Washington DECA.

He first found his interest in marketing through an internship with a nearby media company, and alongside business and marketing, Jay is also passionate about history. He has completed several research projects and is in the process of publishing a short history book.

At school, Jay is an officer for the Knowledge Bowl Team, and teaches elementary school students through the STEM Club. In addition, he loves to swim for his school’s swim team. Previously, he served as the Union High School DECA chapter’s Vice President twice before becoming Area 9’s leader. He hopes to eventually study either Economics or Political Science at college and work in the business field after.

Jay was born and raised in Vancouver, Washington, and throughout high school, DECA has helped Jay develop professional, interpersonal, and leadership skills. He hopes he can help Washington DECA provide those same development opportunities for its 13,000+ members, and looks forward to supporting his fellow DECA members in the upcoming year

Caitlin Pham is a junior from West Valley High School in Yakima. She was thrilled to be given the amazing opportunity to serve as one of your Vice Presidents of Leadership for 2023-2024. She is entering her third year of DECA, and was lucky enough to be an ICDC finalist and the 2023 Area 10 Member of the Year. Although she does not have a specific career plan, she would love to either work for the United Nations doing humanitarian work and peace-keeping with a degree in International Relations or for a non-profit that combats food insecurity. If she has spare time, she enjoys embroidering gifts for her family and friends, as well as sewing, Knowledge Bowl, and reading classic literature.

Throughout her years in DECA, Caitlin has found that many people get swept up in competition and forget that DECA is about more than business and marketing. She believes that every member has the opportunity to grow their heart and community through DECA! With chapter and advisor support, every individual is perfectly capable of launching their own campaign to better their community in different ways. Caitlin has found that the impact you can make this way will stick with you just as long as a championship medal. Please reach out to her with questions or comments at any time.

Audrey Tan is a junior at Pullman High School and is honored to be serving as the 2023-2024 Area 11 president and the Vice President of Leadership. She’s been in DECA since a freshman, participating in the Business Services Marketing series and taking first place at Area as well as going to ICDC in the Buying and Merchandising Team Decision Making event. She also serves as her chapter’s Vice President. She truly believes the potential DECA holds for each and every student is infinite and it is her goal to make this path more accessible to all.

Outside of DECA, Audrey has been a member of Math Team, Environmental Club, Youth in Stem, and Key Club within her highschool. She’s also a Track and Field athlete as well as a Varsity Cross Country runner. Audrey’s always up for a good challenge-whether it’s a difficult math problem or a 5k run! In the future, Audrey plans on attending a four-year university with the goal of working in law.

One of Audrey’s favorite quotes is “Work hard until your idols become your rivals.” With passion, hard work, and a little bit of healthy competition, Audrey believes anyone can reach their goals. She urges everyone in DECA to not be afraid to go after what they want and to try everything! She wishes all the members success and can’t wait to serve everyone this year!