CWI Students Garner Multiple Awards at National Business Professionals of America Conference

Published: May 17, 2024

The College of Western Idaho (CWI) chapter of Business Professionals of America (BPA) attended the annual BPA National Leadership Conference in Chicago, Illinois.

6,500 students, ranging from middle school- to college-level and from around the globe, participated in competitions and service events, with CWI students demonstrating business and information technology skill proficiency — gained from CWI’s Career and Technical Education programs. Nine students from CWI participated, eight of whom achieved top ten finishes in multiple competitions.

Business Professionals of America is a career and technical student organization providing opportunities for students to progress in and expand their professional and technical skills, giving them opportunities not provided simply by obtaining a degree. The College's local chapter is guided by advisors from the Computer Science and Information Technology department, Seth Akers (Assistant Professor, Network Administration) and Linda Otto (Professor, Cybersecurity).

Students achieved the following awards:

First Place

Connor Betz – Computer Network Technology

Ben McCoubrey – Device Configuration and Troubleshooting

William Young – Information Technology Concepts

Second Place

Ken Blankenship – Server Administration using Microsoft

Ken Blankenship – Network Administration using Cisco

Third Place

Cody Ibarra – Server Administration using Microsoft

Andrew Toombs – Intermediate Word Processing

Andrew Toombs – Basic Office Systems & Procedures

Connor Betz – Device Configuration and Troubleshooting

Top 10

Cody Ibarra – Computer Security

Cody Ibarra – Computer Network Technology

Cody Ibarra – Information Technology Concepts

Connor Betz – Device Configuration and Troubleshooting

Connor Betz – Information Technology Concepts

Ken Blankenship – Linux Operating System Fundamentals

Ken Blankenship – Administrative Support Concepts

Reese Murphy – Intermediate Word Processing

Reese Murphy – Basic Office Systems & Procedures

Stanley Ward – Server Administration using Microsoft

Stanley Ward – Linux Operating System Fundamentals

Stanley Ward -Information Technology Concepts

William Young – Linux Operating System Fundamentals

William Young – Computer Security

William Young – Administrative Support Concepts

William Young – Computer Network Technology

Students Receiving Industry Certifications as Part of Competitions:

Cody Ibarra

Connor Betz

Ken Blankenship

Ben McCoubrey

Reese Murphy

Andrew Toombs

William Young

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