As junior Claire Lachner approached the podium, she could feel her heart beating heavily in her chest. She clutched her note cards and stared out at the audience of highly respected professionals, repeating the first line of her speech over and over in her head. As the room hushed, Lachner began her speech with an unwavering and confident tone.
As a sophomore, Lachner knew she wanted to get more involved in her school. The extracurricular club Business Professionals of America presented her with the chance to do that. She jumped on the opportunity of a leadership position and was excited to explore her ideas for the club when she achieved her presidency.
“BPA has taught me so much,” said Lachner. “It was a great way for me to develop my speaking skills and has given me the chance to express my passion for leadership.”
This year with her leading role, Lachner hopes to expand BPA and share her experiences with others. Her main goals this year are to increase membership and help others discover their talents as she did.
“As president, I have numerous responsibilities,” said Lachner. “I have to schedule all of the meetings, plan trips, discuss upcoming events and possible guest speakers with my moderators and then present all of this information to the members.”
As a BPA competitor, Lachner entered in public speech and interview skills. Through these competitions, she learned how to write professional speeches and collaborate with her peers and her superiors.
“I believe that being part of this club has prepared me for the future,” said Lachner. “BPA has exposed me to so many new opportunities and experiences and I’m eager to share them with the new members.”
Lachner has already seen some of her ideas set into action. In order to increase awareness, she promoted the club with posters, announcements and emails. She even got several of her friends to join the club this year.
“At, first they were skeptical, but I knew they would eventually come around.” Lachner said with a smile.
At the club’s first meeting on September 3, Lachner saw her hard work pay off. Approximately 60 new girls showed up that were interested in joining the club.
“I was so glad to see so many new people interested in BPA,” said Lachner. “The work that the officers and I put forth this year, gave us a tremendous turn-out.”
Outside of BPA, Lachner is part of the Spanish Honor Society, Science Olympiad as well as the science club. Additionally, Lachner plays hockey for Little Caesars, and hopes to play throughout her college career. Lachner has enjoyed her experience with BPA and hopes to maintain her presidency through senior year.