County BPA teams compete

MINERAL COUNTY – The next generation of business magnates descended upon Billings last week to compete against opponents from across the state of Montana in a series of events designed to test their mettle under pressure.

The annual Business Professionals of America competition pitted teams from Alberton, St. Regis and Superior against stiff competition from schools all over the state and according to Mineral County BPA coordinators, the teams held their own.

For one coach, the results were some of the best he had seen during his tenure as BPA coordinator. St. Regis High School BPA coordinator Chad Eichenlaub said he was very proud of how well the team performed.

“It went very well for us this year,” Eichenlaub said. “The kids did very well. We had ten (students) get into the top ten in their events. We had one student, Cheyenne Lewis, finish first in two events. She took first in administrative support research individual and she took first in advanced office systems and procedures.”

Eichenlaub said the results were some the best he had seen in his first few years as BPA coordinator. He said ten finishers in the top ten was an impressive result compared to previous years.

“Last year we had one student qualify for nationals,” Eichenlaub said. “I had two students who were in the top ten. This year was pretty amazing. Cheyenne Lewis qualified for nationals as well as Gibson Lowry. They will compete in Anaheim in May.”

Not to be outshined by their cross-county rivals, the BPA team from Alberton also rose to the occasion. Alberton High School BPA coordinator Kent Haab said he also was very impressed with the team’s performance.

“We did very well,” Haab said. “We took first in one event and qualified in another. I’ll have one student trying to fundraise to go to nationals. We took a total of seven students. They enjoyed the trip immensely.”