FCCLA Spirit award winners from Tucumcari.

The Tucumcari Rattlers chapter of the Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America earned several awards at the state competition at Albuquerque, and several students also qualified to compete in the FCCLA's national competition this summer.

The Tucumcari's FCCLA chapter had 13 members who competed on Thursday and Friday at the state event.

Thy competed in Students Taking Action with Recognition (STAR) events, said Jodie Lamm, Tucumcari FCCLA advisor. The STAR events included a set of criteria, that could earn them a gold medal based on a score of 90 to 100 points,  a silver medal, 60 to 89 points or a bronze medal for a score of 69 or less.

The students competed against other chapters from across the state and at two levels of competition, state and national.

 "When a student competes in the state level events, they do not earn a chance to compete at nationals," Lamm said. "In the national events, the highest score at the state competition qualifies you to compete this summer at the national meeting and competition at Nashville, Tenn." 

FCCLA members who won in the state-level events were:
l  Seventh-grader Manuel Blea, fourth place and a bronze medal in the Crudités Tray Junior level event.

l  Senior Megan Evans, first place and a silver medal in the Crudités Tray senior level event.

In the Photo: Tucumcari’s Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America, earned the Spirit award at the state competiton. In front, from left, are  Sharayah Sisneros, Fabiana Montano and Roxanne Awais. In back, Manuel Blea, left,  Merissa Cooper, Katie Lamm, Jessyka Trujillo, Anisha Bhakta, Kassie Lamm, Megan Evans, Haley Binkley and Tonya Branch. 

l  The team of Tonya Branch and Haley Binkley, both juniors,  first place and a bronze medal in the Fashion Apparel Display senior-level event.
Members who won national-level events were:

l  The middle school team of seventh-graders Merissa Cooper, Anisha Bhakta and Fabiana Montano, second place and a silver medal in the Illustrated Talk junior level event.

l  Junior Beth Romero, second place and a bronze medal in the Interior Design senior level event.

l  The middle school team of seventh-graders Kassie Lamm amd Roxanne Awais, first place and a silver medal. The team also qualified  to compete at nationals in the Applied Technology junior-level event.

l  The high school team of Binkley and Branch earned first place and a silver medal, qualifying to compete at nationals in the Entrepreneurship senior level event.  
l  The high school team of sophomores Sharayah Sisneros, Jessyka Trujillo, and Katie Lamm,  first place and a silver medal, and also qualified to compete at nationals in the Interior Design senior level event.

Jodie Lamm said that this is the second year for Sisneros and Katie Lamm to qualify for national competition.

"I am very excitted to have the chance to go back to nationals," Sisneros said. "I learned so much the first time around and got to meet a lot of great people."

"Nationals gave me an opportunity to grow," Katie Lamm said.

In addition, Romero was also installed as a FCCLA state officer. She will serve for 12 months on the State Executive Council as the vice president of STAR events, and will also attend the FCCLA National meeting in Nashville.

Tucumcari was also recognized for several other awards.  

The middle school had worked in the fall with Alice Johnson of the Quay County Extension Service to teach the “Eat Smart, Play Hard” nutrition program to the third-grade classes at the elementary school.  Part of the requirements of the program was to complete a notebook and present their project in a competition at the state meeting. The program awards each school that participates a $100 gift certificate to use for nutrition supplies or materials. Tucumcari was awarded first place in the middle school category, and received an additional $200 gift certificate!

Jodie Lamm said that the New Mexico FCCLA organazation had decided to implement a new “Spirit Stick” award. The award is given to the chapter that had the highest amount of participation and enthusiasm at the state meeting, which the Tucumcari chapter won.

"We were not expecting to win," Katie Lamm said. "We thought that one of the larger schools were going to win the award. It gave us a lot of pride for our school to win this award.

Jodie Lamm was also awarded a certificate for  serving as an FCCLA advisor. 

 “I was surprised to receive this, as it is actually my 21st year, and I got a 20-year certificate last year!” said Jodie Lamm.  “This is the best my students have ever done, and since all of the work is done outside of class, that tells you how much time and work they put into their projects.  The scary part now is having to earn enough money to take eight students plus myself to nationals.”