Holy Angels juniors and seniors who excel in the Academy’s business education program have been inducted into the National Business Honor Society.
AHA’s business and technology teacher Krystal Reilly led the May 16 induction ceremony for upperclassmen who have maintained an average of 3.5 or higher in their business courses.
New inductees include Katherine Day of Oradell, Nicole Grimpas and Paulina Morgan of Closter, Brooke Hess of Cedar Grove, Annabelle Hur of Norwood, Eleni “Laila” Tallides of Cresskill, Chaelin Park of Palisades Park, Arwen Parmelee of Upper Saddle River, Natalie Pienkawa of Demarest, Julie Rubino of Nutley, Ashley Sung of Fort Lee, and Shivani Sahu of Paramus.
Reilly also recognized seniors Eliza Hoover of Mahwah and Hannah Kim of Cresskill, who were inducted at last year’s hybrid (in-person and virtual) ceremony.
Several inductees delivered the prayer their peers wrote for the 2021 event.
The Angels expressed their desire to make ethical and moral business decisions, and lead by example in male-dominated careers.
Reilly, who established AHA’s NBHS chapter in 2018, welcomed the Academy’s seven charter members in the spring of 2019.
In her remarks to this year’s inductees, she noted the continuing success and growth of AHA’s program.
Reilly acknowledged that business has traditionally been a predominantly male milieu, but more women are now rising to the top of highly-regarded international enterprises.
“Women have flipped the switch,” Reilly said.
She added that the goal is not simply for women to enter the field of business, but to make a lasting impact.
Reilly expressed her view that this year’s inductees are on a path to leave a legacy. In particular, she mentioned how they have courageously tested their business skills through competition in DECA, an organization for students who have an interest in business, marketing, management, and entrepreneurship.
This year, AHA qualified for the state-level competition in Atlantic City, and three Angels became the first Holy Angels students to participate in the DECA International Career Development Conference in Atlanta, Georgia.
The Academy’s three international competitors, who joined nearly 18,000 peers from high schools in multiple nations, all finished at the top of their respective categories.
Shivani Sahu finished in third place overall in the automotive services marketing series.
Jaclyn Larraz finished ninth overall in the virtual business challenge – fashion. Sharanya Agarwalearned the top score in her group presentation, and advanced to the finals as one of the top 18 competitors in the principles of finance category.
She received a Silver Ribbon Medallion for earning the top score in her group’s presentation.
AHA has been participating in DECA events since the 2018-19season, when the Academy’s team reached the state-level competition for the first time.