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2021 National Leadership Conference Information
After thoughtful discussions with our Board of Trustees, partner hotel, conference partners, as well as review of survey feedback from our members, Business Professionals of America has made the decision to move our 2021 National Leadership Conference to a fully online, virtual experience. Although it is disappointing that we will not be able to get together in-person this year, the health and safety of our students, advisors and other BPA stakeholders remains our number one priority.
 We are excited that we will be able to hold a completely virtual event this year and make it possible for our members to compete, engage and broaden their learning opportunities. In addition to offering all WSAP Competitive Events, students and advisors will be able to participate virtually in leadership development workshops, networking, the Ambassador Torch Awards Ceremony, and more!
We know that you have questions about what the 2021 National Leadership Conference will look like, and we are eager to share it with you once we have completed adjusting our planning. More information will be forthcoming regarding conference registration, event schedule and the online system we will use to provide a unique virtual conference experience for all attendees.
Thank you for your patience, and stay tuned for more information.
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Last Day for National Board of Trustees Nominations
Today, February 16, 2021 is the deadline for board nomination submissions.
Are you or do you know anyone who may be interested in serving as a member of the national BPA Board of Trustees? If so, we encourage you to review the election process and submit a nomination at https://bpa.org/about-us/our-people/board-of-trustees/.
There are four (4) positions up for election this year, with terms serving from 2021-2024. Those positions and their respective qualifications are:
- At-Large Representative: At-large members must be employed in a position directly related to business, information technology, and/or office occupations education or Business Professionals of America. This shall include: teaching at any level; local supervisors of business, information technology, and office occupations; Business Professionals of America state sponsors, state advisors, executive secretaries; Alumni members employed in a business occupation; and representatives of business and/or service industries. The at-large members should be employed in a Business Professionals of America affiliated state unless place of employment is changed after election.
- State Supervisor: Any state officer in business education, information technology, and/or office education and/or the person designated by the career and technical education division of the state department of education or state board of career and technical education.
- Secondary Local Advisor: A business education, information technology, and/or office education teacher who is serving as an advisor/sponsor at the secondary level.
- Post-secondary Local Advisor: A business, business education, information technology, and/or office education teacher who is serving as an advisor/sponsor at a certificate, associate, or baccalaureate level institution.
The board nomination submission deadline is Tuesday, February 16, 2021 at 11:59 pm EST. Nominees for the board must also complete the Board of Trustees Nominee Acceptance Form by Monday, February 22, 2021 at 11:59 pm EST.
If you have interest in board service but would like to learn more about the process, roles, and responsibilities, questions can be directed to board@bpa.org.
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Dear Post-secondary BPA Advisors:
Your eligible students could receive up to $10,000* to help with tuition as they work toward their career as a CPA. Whether a community college student who’s transferring to a four-year accounting program, a graduate student who’s well on their way to becoming a CPA, or somewhere in between, the AICPA has a scholarship opportunity for your students through their Legacy Scholarship program.
The AICPA Legacy Scholarship application period is open now until March 1, 2021.
Students simply submit one application to be considered for all AICPA Legacy Scholarships they are eligible for, such as:
- AICPA / Robert Half Scholarship
- AICPA Foundation Scholarship for Future CPAs
- American Woman's Society of Certified Public Accountants (AWSCPA) Scholarship Award
- AICPA John L. Carey Scholarship Award
- AICPA Scholarship Award for Minority Accounting Students
- AICPA Foundation Two-year Transfer Scholarship Award
Send your students this link to have them apply: https://bit.ly/AICPA-Legacy-Scholarship.
*Scholarship eligibility requirements and amounts vary depending on the award. Visit thiswaytocpa.com for further details on individual award requirements
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Running for National Office
Do You Know Someone Who Has What it Takes to Serve as a National Officer?
As a student-focused organization, the BPA Executive Council provides leadership and guidance to our more than 40,000 student members. They are tasked with making sure fellow members understand the valuable programs and helpful resources offered by BPA. Additionally, they collaborate with multiple stakeholders across our organization to continually enhance the BPA experience and help ensure the long-term success of all members.
If you know someone who has what it takes to serve as a National Officer, or someone that may be interested in learning more and possibly applying, we encourage downloading the “National Officer Applicant Handbook” on the BPA Member Gateway at https://members.bpa.org/students/run-for-national-office/.
The deadline for application submission is April 1, 2021. For any questions, please contact National Officer Coordinator, Mark Burch, at mburch@bpa.org.
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Knowledge Matters Virtual Business Challenge Ending Soon
Challenge open to all Secondary Division Student Members
There's still time for BPA Secondary Division student members to join in on this year's Virtual Business Challenge for a chance to take top prize in this event. In addition to the traditional Accounting track, which has been offered for the past several years, Knowledge Matters has launched a second track in Entrepreneurship, offering twice the challenge and twice the prizes!
 In the Entrepreneurship track, participants will spot opportunities, conduct market research, make the plunge and open their business. They will raise finances, build a team, acquire resources, organize workflow, determine risks, develop marketing strategies, and more. Don’t let your chapter members miss out on their opportunity to compete for a chance to win scholarship money!
Team registration for both BPA Virtual Business Challenges (VBC) is still open and will remain so until February 26, 2021 at 5:00 PM ET. Please have your members visit https://knowledgematters.com/highschool/competitions/bpa/ to register and participate in this totally interactive technological competition.
The event is based on the classroom versions of the Virtual Business Accounting & Entrepreneurship simulations, so if your students already have online Virtual Business accounts, they will not have to register for new accounts. They will, however, still have to create new VBC teams.
As this event is completely web-based, students may compete from home or from school. This event offers the flexibility for participants to compete from wherever they have Internet access.
IMPORTANT –
- ADVISOR ACCOUNTS: You will need to log in to approve teams registered under your chapter. Advisor accounts have already been created and are accessible by visiting https://vb.knowledgematters.com/ and using the following log in credentials:
- Email: Please use the email address associated to your Secondary Division Chapter in the BPA Member Registration System
- Password: password
- *Please change your password as soon as you log in.
*NOTE: If you already have an online Virtual Business account affiliated with your email address, advisors are encouraged to continue using that same log-in information and not set up a second account.
For more details and rules regarding the BPA VBC, please visit the Knowledge Matters website at https://knowledgematters.com/highschool/competitions/bpa/. If you have any questions regarding the BPA VBC, please contact Knowledge Matters at: Support@KnowledgeMatters.com.
During the event, follow the Knowledge Matters’ Facebook page and we’ll see you there. Knowledge Matters is also active on Twitter – you and your students can connect with us via Twitter too.
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Students Recruiting Students Video Contest Entry Deadline Approaching
The 2021 Students Recruiting Students video contest is still accepting entries, but time is running out. Back for the second year, this contest is open to ALL BPA STUDENT MEMBERS, and invites students to test their video creation skills! Business Professionals of America is excited to be able to partner with sponsor MasterMIND Productions on this offering. This video contest is open to all three divisions of student membership: Middle Level, Secondary and Post-secondary, and is designed for teams of 2-5 students who will work together to complete their challenge.
 Teams may focus their video on one of the following topics:
• My BPA Story – Personal Student Journeys in BPA
• BPA Torch Awards Program
• BPA Cares Program
• Leadership Development Opportunities
• About BPA / Promoting Business Professionals of America
Videos should be no longer than 2-3 minutes in length and highlight/showcase Business Professionals of America from a student member’s viewpoint. Use of copyrighted video, music, images, logos, and trademarks is prohibited; entries that contain any copyrighted materials will be disqualified unless written permission to use the materials is acquired and submitted to the National Center of Business Professionals of America along with the entry.
For full details including technical requirements, specifications, judging, submissions and entry deadline, please visit: https://bpa.org/nlc/partner-competitions/students-recruiting-students-contest/.
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Save the Date for These Upcoming BPA Webinars
In order to dedicate more time to answer specific questions that members have pertaining to webinar topics, our model has changed for releasing each webinar for the 2020-2021 membership year. Please note that webinars will be made available on Mondays by 10:00 am Eastern time at https://bpa.org/events/webinar-series/. Additionally, a live Q&A session will be held via Zoom on Thursdays of the same week from 6:00 - 7:00 pm Eastern Time.
MARCH
Are you planning to attend the 2021 National Leadership Conference this year? Then you won't want to miss this webinar! Join our Director of Strategic Programs & Experiences, Jonathan Smith, as he provides an overview of the conference, as well as eligibility requirements, important deadlines and helpful tips on how to get your students registered for NLC. **NOTE This is a date change from what was previously promoted**
- Monday, March 1, 2021 - NLC Advisor Orientation
- Thursday, March 4, 2021 - NLC Advisor Orientation Live Q&A
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