2011 State Conference and Recruitment

This was my second year taking students to the state conference and it went very well. I only took 3 students this year but whether its 3 or 13 I think its worth it. It was a less stressful experience this year since I already knew what to expect. It's always a great feeling to walk into the hotel and see all the students dressed up and excited for the conference. As always, the keynote speaker was fabulous and he got the conference off to a great start. That night was spent rehearsing a few more times for my students' event the next day and giving some last minute tips. The next day and a half were a whirlwind of activities that included me judging, the banquet, dance, and my students getting a silver medal! They came home with lots of great stories that got members excited for next year's FCCLA conferences.

Speaking of next year... the first big recruitment opportunity we have is our school's club fair. Here we set up a booth with a big poster board that has lots of pictures of what we did the previous year. Another thing I do is make sure the FCCLA logo is seen around school whether it be on posters advertising our upcoming events or wearing my FCCLA apron or shirt. One thing I have learned about keeping members is to give responsibilities to as many members as possible. For example, besides our officers, two students will be in charge of planning lunch, another is in charge of planning community service, etc.