![Nine UNK students recently attended the FBLA Collegiate National Leadership Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. They won 10 awards at the event, including four national championships. (Courtesy photo)](http://unknews.unk.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/UNK-FBLA-Web.jpg)
ATLANTA – University of Nebraska at Kearney students won 10 awards at the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) Collegiate National Leadership Conference.
Hosted June 22-25 in Atlanta, Georgia, the annual conference gives FBLA members from colleges and universities across the country an opportunity to network, attend leadership workshops and compete in events testing their business knowledge and skills. The top 10 performers in each event were recognized June 25 during the Awards of Excellence Ceremony.
Nine UNK students attended the national conference, and eight placed inside the top 10 in at least one event. The Lopers were national champions in four categories and national runner-up in two events. UNK also received a Gold Seal Award of Merit, which recognizes chapters that have actively participated in projects and programs identified with the goals of FBLA.
Students participating in the conference were Courtney Cox of Alliance, Olivia Lawless of Aurora, Jake Elliott of Burwell, Maritza Calmo Martin of Lexington, Trista Marx of Limon, Colorado, Joseph Hiatt of Spencer, Megan Wallman of Syracuse, Ella O’Neil of Wauneta and Jackie Kalkwarf of Wilber.
FBLA is the largest business career and technical student organization in the world. The collegiate division is dedicated to inspiring and developing the next generation of leaders by preparing members for careers in business-related fields.
UNK Results
First place – Joseph Hiatt and Olivia Lawless, Emerging Business Issues; Courtney Cox, Foundations of Finance; Jackie Kalkwarf, Future Business Educator; Joseph Hiatt, Future Business Executive.
Second place – Maritza Calmo Martin, Help Desk; Joseph Hiatt and Olivia Lawless, State of the Chapter.
Fourth place – Courtney Cox, Finance Case Competition.
Fifth place – Jake Elliott, Administrative Support Technology.
Eighth place – Trista Marx, Retail Management.
Ninth place – Ella O’Neil, Microeconomics.
Placing 1st overall in BOTH the Future Business Educator and the Future Business Executive is @UNKearney!✨🥇✨#nlc2023 #fblacollegiate #nefblac pic.twitter.com/Umj3M09ppt
— Nebraska FBLA-Collegiate (@NE_FBLAC) June 27, 2023
Nebraska came home from NLC with not only 53 Top Ten awards, but also 9 National Champions! WOWZA!🤩
Congratulations to all of our competitors, advisors, and Nebraska professors for making this level of success for our state chapter possible!#fblacollegiate #nefblac #nlc2023 pic.twitter.com/JnpQSQ8TKm
— Nebraska FBLA-Collegiate (@NE_FBLAC) June 28, 2023