Congratulations to Bonneville High School's DECA chapter, recently one of three district schools to earn Thrive Level Chapter recognition from DECA Inc., which is the highest honor DECA awards.
This recognition is no small feat. To earn Thrive Level Chapter status, chapters must complete a rigorous set of activities focused on chapter development, community engagement, membership growth, leadership development, and competition readiness, demonstrating excellence across the full DECA experience.
To put this into perspective:
DECA Inc. has approximately 4,400 chapters nationwide, and only 709 chapters achieved Thrive Level recognition, about 16% nationally.
In Utah, only 13 out of 85 chapters earned this distinction, roughly 15% statewide.
On top of that, we are incredibly excited to share that Bonneville was one of two schools in the district to earn Thrive Membership Level Chapter recognition, which is the highest honor DECA awards. These chapters completed additional, advanced requirements demonstrating exceptional impact and sustained excellence.
Again, to highlight how significant this is:
Only 331 chapters nationwide earned Thrive Membership Level recognition, about 7.5%.
In Utah, just six schools total achieved this honor, around 7% statewide.
A huge shout-out to Ralph Anderson and Emily Okerlund, veteran teachers and advisors, who make this possible every day. As absolute all-stars, their leadership, dedication, and passion for students are clearly reflected in these accomplishments.
Here is a link to the official announcement by DECA Inc: https://www.decadirect.org/articles/announcing-decas-2025-26-chapter-campaign-winners
In addition - I know! there is even more to write about DECA - Bonneville students are the reigning WeberBiz Invitational Champions! With that distinction comes a plaque and a large banner for the school, alongside a presentation and ceremony from Weber State University. The banner will be prominently displayed at Bonneville to celebrate the team and their success, while the plaque will be featured on the earned trophy. This will take place on Tuesday, January 27th, at 9 am at the Lighthouse during Flex to celebrate Bonneville Business and Marketing, along with some fantastic students and their achievements.
As Advisor Ralph Anderson said, "It's a great day to be a Laker!"
