It all started last year when senior Maddy Millikan’s brother persuaded her to join DECA. Millikan knew she wanted to get more involved in DECA so she became the voting delegate for District 6. But this wasn’t enough for her. She wanted more. With help from Lauren Reiche and Thu Nguyen, she set the goal to be Vice President of District 6 this year.

At that time, Hannah Artman from Francis Howell Central was the District 6 Vice President. That changed on Sept. 20.

On Sept. 20, DECA members went on a field trip to the St. Peters Government Center. For most students this was a day to relax and enjoy the day away from school. For Millikan and the six other candidates running for District 6 Vice President, the situation was different. The election process consisted of a vigorous test, speech and interview. After that, a panel of judges give each candidate a score. After the scores were totaled, it was decided that Millikan would be the new Vice President for District 6.

“When they announced that I was the new vice president, I was so excited,” Millikan said. “I felt a great sense of accomplishment, but mainly I was just glad it was over.”

As newly elected Vice President, Millikan took on a new load of responsibilities. As part of her position, he has to set goals for the district, keep records of everything DECA does, and plan all of the DECA events, such as the District 6 Annual Dodgeball Tournament. In spite of these pressures, DECA sponsors have been happy with Maddy’s performance as Vice President.

“I knew she would be a good leader,” DECA sponsor Melissa Trochim said. “You can easily see that she loves DECA, is confident in her decisions, and is easy to work with in district planning.”

After taking on this new role, Millikan feels her attitude toward school has changed for the better. As keeping a 2.5 GPA is one of the requirements for her position, she has found herself to be a little more diligent in her school work.

“I have to think things through more as Vice President,” Millikan said. “Since I represent my district, I have to stay more focused in class and clean up my act.”

While her life at school has changed so has her life at home. According to her, and her mother, she feels she is more organized around the house. She knows what she has done, and what she still needs to do.

Each year, the district sets four goals. The first is to get a Missouri legislator to sign a letter for the district to compete. Second, to raise $90,000 for the M.D.A., Muscular Dystrophy Association. The third is to get membership in the district back up to 10,000 members. And the fourth goal is to get one person from each section to compete at the state level.

“I feel things are going pretty good so far,” Millikan said. “Everything I have planned to have done has been done, and everything else is going very smoothly.”

Adam Rapert