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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