In the middle of the summer, while most students were relaxing in the sun, Rushil Reddy ‘27 and Gabe Meinstein ‘26 were busy preparing presentations, taking practice tests and boarding a flight to California. Not for a getaway–but to compete in the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) National Leadership Conference.
The competition hosts about 10,000 students, where they compete in different business and leadership oriented events, ranging from Securities and Investments to Electronic Portfolio. To qualify for the National Leadership Conference, one must place fourth or above in the State Leadership Conference. Even before that, you must get third or above in the regional competition to qualify for the state competition.
“Being at that conference definitely helped me clarify my aspirations for business and what fields I wanted to be in,” Meinstein said. “It definitely was a great way to get some experience with the field of business.”
Different events have differing formats, varying from tests to presentations. Reddy competed in the Securities and Investments event, which tests competitors on topics such as stocks and bonds.
“I competed in Securities and Investments. It’s about stocks, bonds and derivatives,” Reddy said. “I chose it because when I was in ninth grade, I was going through the list [of events] and that was the one that piqued my interest, and I thought would be the most enjoyable to study out of all of them.”
After shining in the regional and state competitions, Reddy continued his streak of success by placing 4th in his event at the National Leadership Conference. Going into the 2025-2026 school year, Reddy is stepping up to be a leader of GA’s FBLA club, which first introduced him to the competition and program.
“I always heard about these things called stocks, but I never really knew too much about them,” Reddy said. “[FBLA] shows you a lot more new stuff that I actually think will be applicable in my life. For most people, if you want to do well, especially in your retirement, you want to invest a bit. So I think everything I learned from this, or most of it, will be quite helpful.”
Meanwhile, competing in a very different event, Meinstein was busy preparing and practicing his Electronic Career Portfolio presentation. In the event, participants speak about their future career goals, and experiences that have helped them work towards it.
“I thought [my event] was an interesting way to present the evolution of what career I’ve been interested in and all I’ve done, so I would say it is like a mini college application,” Meinstein said. “It’s a presenting event, so I thought I could take advantage of some of the good public speaking skills I’ve worked towards with SGA and other clubs I’m involved in. I locked myself in my room, and I think over a period of two days, I probably practiced my presentation around 100 times.”
Ultimately, Meinstein’s countless repetitions of preparation and practice paid off. He was a standout in his event, impressing the judges and ending up as a finalist in the National Leadership Conference.
Overall, both Meinstein and Reddy found themselves learning new concepts and developing their business skills from participating in FBLA. As a result of their dedication and hard work, not only did they walk away with newfound knowledge, experience, and developed passions, but also were shining standouts.