Last week, eight FCCLA students competed at regionals in Corpus Christi with two groups qualifying for state.  Juniors Kennedy Brown and Ashtyn Phillips took first place in National Programs in Action, and while juniors Ivy Gutierrez, Chloe Hall and sophomore Sydney Schuetzeberg took third in Focus on Children.

“I think we did a really good job,” Brown said. “We came prepared, and we worked hard.”

Brown and Phillips did their presentation on bullying, and the Focus on Children group did theirs on fire safety. Last year, Brown took part in regionals, where she and her group got first place in Life Event Planning.

“It was really fun,” Brown said. “It was different this year because we had different people, but it was still really cool.”

Both groups kept focus on their projects with repetition. They would practice their speeches and did extensive research to understand every aspect of their topics. The Focus in Children group prepared for regionals by presenting to elementary schools and their FCCLA advisors, and they continued to rehearse their speech at the hotel at the competition.

“I was really stressed in the beginning,” Gutierrez said, “but I’m really proud of what we did. We know we made a lot of mistakes going into regionals, but we’re getting prepared for state.”

The groups will compete at state Apr. 9, at Dallas. Until then, FCCLA will be preparing and improving their projects.

 “I am confident that the two groups that will be competing at the state level, will represent Rouse High School very well,” FCCLA sponsor Jessica Thailing said. “It is exciting to see how becoming involved in FCCLA broadens their leadership and public speaking abilities.