On Mar. 11-16, 2025, Huron’s Business Professionals of America took a trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan, to compete in the state leadership competition. Junior Emily Hu was named state president at the awards ceremony.
“I feel really grateful and honored,” Hu said. “BPA has been something I really found a passion in. I was so happy at the campaign rally, getting to know people from all over the all over Michigan, especially people from the Upper Peninsula, learning about their difficulties because live in the UP. I’m honored to be able to serve.”
The day of the award ceremony was an eventful one for Hu. After getting to know people on the State Executive Council, it was exciting to see what the future held for Michigan BPA.
“I was so nervous that I didn’t eat at all,” she said. “When they started announcing, we were all holding hands around a circle table. When they called me up, I was just beyond happy.”
The process to get to this stage wasn’t an easy one. Hu had to fill out countless forms, collaborate with principals and teachers, and participate in an on-demand fishbowl.
“There was a bowl where you pick out a random question,” she said. “There was 160 voting delegates, and you had 30 seconds to answer the question on demand, and they would evaluate you on how well you did.”
At the campaign rally on Saturday, all the candidates filled in a ballroom to promote their campaign; Hu had a stand with flyers and candy. Voting delegates approached each platform to ask about what made them, as a potential president, stand out. Her plans as president are innovative and exciting.
“One thing I talked about was using social media to leverage BPA,” she said. “On Tik Tok, we always see videos about DECA, so I talked about how I wanted to make BPA a trend too. I also wanted to do internship opportunities, because I think that’s the most practical way for people to actually gain experience.”
Hu will lead her team of BPA officers this fall with readiness and courage.
“My field hockey coach always says this- a team of champions will never beat a champion team.”
