Of 11 of students competing in the Business Professionals of America, BPA, regionals in Frisco, three have qualified for state in Dallas.

BPA is a way for students to use their skills to compete in different categories.

Junior Jonathan Birl competed in Legal Office Procedures and placed third.

“It’s not really all interesting, but I like it,” Birl said. “[There were] a whole bunch of people there. I thought I didn’t have any chance.”

Competitors were given an opportunity to do what they enjoy and be recognized for it. Shoalmire placed first in Visual Basic/C# Programming.

“It’s a place you can meet new people and work on programming,” freshman Mason Shoalmire said. “[It was] lots of fun. It was a cool trip.”

Being a part of the Business Professionals of America is beneficial for potential scholarships as well as a way to meet other students.

“I had fun. There were a lot of people there,” freshman Richard Bittorf said. “We just went and did our competition stuff, then we got to hang out with a lot of cool people.”

Bittorf placed fourth in PC Servicing and Troubleshooting. These three students will meet up again for State in Dallas late February.

“It was a good experience,” Birl said. “I’ve been studying hard [for State] and I can’t wait for it.”