Friday, March 29, 2024

Betas compete at national convention, win four awards, visit nation’s capitol

Beta-at-DC2Submitted by Kirsten Trambley

Vienna High School Beta Club members recently attended the 34th annual National Senior Beta Club Convention in Richmond, VA.

Betas, sponsors, chaperones and guests from Vienna High School and Century High School departed from VHS in the early morning of Wednesday, June 25. They returned home with four awards late in the evening of Tuesday, July 1.

Andrea Botello received third place in the Spanish test. Miranda Brookshier and Taylour Daubert received fifth place in the banner competition. Miranda Brookshier and Taylor Bundren each placed in the top 10 in on-site acrylic painting and creative writing, respectively. These four awards are a great accomplishment and the most that VHS Betas have ever earned at the national level.

In addition to the four award-winning competitions, VHS Betas also participated in two other competitions after qualifying at the state level in March. Megan McCuan took the math test, and 26 students participated in a military-themed group talent titled, “Another Day, Another Life.”

Megan-Smith-campaignsMeighan Smith, Illinois Senior Beta Club President, competed for the office of National Senior Beta Club President. She delivered a two-minute speech, followed by a one-minute promotional skit by the VHS Beta Club’s members. Then, Smith participated in a question-and-answer segment.

Smith did not succeed in attaining the office, but she competed well against her other candidates.

Smith and other VHS Betas had the opportunity to speak to and network with many Beta Club members from throughout the nation while campaigning.

Throughout the brief intermissions during general sessions, Beta Club posted a Twitter wall on the screens which regularly project close-up shots of the speakers and performers on stage. The 2013-2014 national officers chose the hashtag #NatBeta14.

Many of the VHS Betas were thrilled when their tweets were posted to the Twitter board. The Betas attending the convention used their leadership skills to push #NatBeta14 to the position of the second highest nationally-trending topic on Twitter which is not an easy feat.

Illinois represented well at the convention overall. Olivia Gordon, outgoing Illinois Senior Beta Club Secretary of Anna-Jonesboro High School, received a scholarship of $10,000 and delivered an inspiration to the crowd during the final general session.

All three 2014-2015 Illinois Senior Beta Club Officers ran for their offices at the national level. These include president Smith, vice president DreQuan Green of Cairo, and secretary Alex Bertrand of Century.

Additionally, other schools from Illinois participated in numerous academic and artistic competitions after qualifying at the state convention.

Following the conclusion of National Senior Beta Club Convention 2014, Vienna and Century Betas traveled to a suburb of Washington, D.C. The group spent two days in the nation’s capital where they saw Arlington National Cemetery, the Capitol Building, the Lincoln Memorial, the National Zoo, Smithsonian Museums, the White House and many other sites.

VHS Betas are grateful for the amount of support that was given from the school and the monetary sponsors from the community. The club is already preparing to fill leadership roles for the next school year and deciding on themes for the year’s activities and competitions.