FCCLA State Conference and Recruitment Ideas

What a great experience the FCCLA State Conference was! (It's a great experience anytime I can get out and meet with other FACS teachers since I'm the only one at my school.) This year I took seven students, three of who competed in a Star Event. The kids and I were very excited to get on our way and after 1 1/2 hours of driving and three wrong turns we were there. What a surprise it was to see the hotel lobby turned into a giant game of Monopoly! The next two and a half days were a whirlwind of activity from getting students to workshops, to making final preparations for Star Event competitions, to judging. Like always, the conference was well planned and both I and the students learned so much and are excited for next year's conference.

As for membership recruitment ideas, I have gotten a lot of ideas throughout the year. The first membership recruitment opportunity at our school happens at the beginning of the year with the school club fair. All the clubs and organizations set up tables and sign up members. At the FCCLA table we hang banners, hand out brochures and candy, and have a big poster with pictures of everything we did the year before. Members from the previous year are on hand to talk about what an awesome experience it is to be in FCCLA. If your school doesn't have a club fair maybe you could suggest it.

Recruiting throughout the year is also a must. A tip I've heard is to make FCCLA visible throughout the school. Wear FCCLA shirts, hang FCCLA banners, etc. At my school, we put announcements in through the intercom about what FCCLA is doing. For example, "FCCLA members and others interested, don't forget to come in on Wednesday to make pies for the Salvation Army's Thanksgiving dinner." This gets people interested and they come in, get involved, and eventually join. These are just a few things I've picked up that I have seen work to get more students involved in FCCLA.