Marketing teacher and DECA adviser Jen Hendrickson received an Outstanding Virginia DECA Advisor award on March tenth at this year’s Virginia DECA State Leadership Conference, making it the third time she has received this award in her career.
“To be the only one from Fairfax County really surprises me because I work with a ton of other advisers who are awesome,” Hendrickson said.
These awards are based on a point system where advisers can earn points based on their participation in events at the local, district and state levels.
Advisers can participate in activities that include holding leadership roles in conferences and encouraging chapter participation in DECA.
Points are accumulated annually with a maximum of 400 possible but only 230 are needed to win an award. Activities may require advisers to go “above and beyond the basic requirements,” Hendrickson said.
Some events that Hendrickson was involved in include presenting at her Professional Conference where she discussed how DECA can be used as an instructional strategy in the classroom as well as coordinating Marshall DECA’s “Treats for Treatment” community service project where students collected items to give to the pediatric unit at Inova Fairfax Hospital.
She also serves on the Board of Trustees for Virginia DECA and oversees some of the categories for competitions at the district and state levels, both of which require being very committed and performing at a high level.
“Getting the recognition isn’t near as important as making sure my students feel like I have been the best adviser for them,” Hendrickson said.
According to Hendrickson, the value she takes from this award is knowing that she has been there for her students and chapter which is her main priority.
“For me it’s more than getting a plaque and being on stage,” Hendrickson said. “When I am on stage and there’s three thousand people in the arena watching … I could hear my students and my chapter yelling and screaming for me. That was my award, to have them feel good for me. That was amazing.”