EducationSaturday, May 9, 2015 Valley Courier Page 9

By MARGARET SANDERSON

ALAMOSA — Trinidad State students Merisa Arm-strong, Luis Garcia and Erin Guymon will be moving on to “Nationals” after winning performances at the state Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) confer-ence held in Colorado Springs last month.

PBL is an education asso-ciation for college students who are preparing for careers in business and business-related fi elds. The organiza-tion also has a professional division for business people. It is organized at local, state, and national levels. Students who earn fi rst or second place in the state competition go on to compete at nationals.

Armstrong placed second in Word Processing, Garcia placed first in Web Site Design, and Erin Guymon placed fi rst in Accounting Principles. Taylor and Jonah Bollinger, two brothers in high school who are gradu-ating with college degrees before they graduate high school, are also PBL members and they too competed at the state conference.

Merisa Armstrong is a proud wife and mother of three beautiful children. Currently, she is involved in two parent committees in her community: one for La Jara Elementary and the other as chairman for the Head Start in Sanford. She also coaches soccer for her son’s team. As a full-time student, she is a work study who helps to co-ordinate Student Life events and assist with the needs in that offi ce. Armstrong, who has been heavily involved with student government, will graduate on May 8 with her AAS in general studies and will complete her LPN (Licensed Practical Nurse) this summer. She plans to work toward a bachelor’s in business management.

“In PBL I have learned to be persistent with my questions as I seek answers, to rely more upon myself than oth-ers and I have learned from my weaknesses. At Nationals I’m hoping to stand on stage in the top ten of my event, Word Processing.”

Described as hardworking, respectful and responsible, Luis Garcia graduated from Center High School with honors. He is majoring in business management at Trinidad State and plans to graduate in May 2016. Fluent in both Spanish and English, he worked in a gro-cery store where he learned how to stock, face and rotate goods. Garcia is a team player and he’s “looking forward to meeting others with similar interests and learning about Chicago,” when he competes

Three TSJC Valley Campus students head to nationalsat Nationals.

Erin Guymon is graduating from Trinidad State May 8 with a certifi cate in account-ing and an AAS (Associate of Applied Science) in business management. She will con-tinue her accounting studies at Adams State. In addition to PBL, Erin is a member of Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) honor society and has earned a 4.0 GPA. She served as president of PBL and tutored others in the business program.

“PBL competitions are a great opportunity for stu-dents to test and show off what they have learned in class,” said Guymon. “It’s a lot of work, but it’s also a lot of fun. I would recommend it for any student, business major or not, because there truly is something for everyone to choose from at the state competitions, something they enjoy and are good at. Win-ning and hearing my name called was an exhilarating experience. I’m looking for-ward to competing against the best students from all across the country. I also grew up not far from Chicago, so it will be interesting to go back and visit.”

Nationals will take place in Chicago from June 24 thru 27. The best and the bright-est will compete in leadership events and will network with others about successes, new ideas, and future careers. Workshops and exhibits will enhance their experience.

Resources for their travel expenses are limited. The club is working to raise $3,500 to pay for their reg-istration, travel and motel expenses, but they will need even more to cover inciden-tals and meals. Fund-raisers the students have had to date include selling emergency cell phone chargers, having a bake sale at the Student Government holiday party, and selling beverages at Casino Night. The Student Government has allocated some of its funds to assist the students. They are brain-storming about other fund-raising possibilities.

Local businesses can spon-sor a student to help with ex-penses for the PBL National Leadership Conference in June. In exchange students will provide community service for that organiza-tion. The students will also provide to the business a photograph taken at a Chi-cago landmark or conference activity which will include a sign stating the business’s name. This will then be posted on the Trinidad State Facebook page.

To learn more about PBL, or to sponsor a student, call Genia Rasmussen at 589-7052.

From left are Taylor Bollinger, Merisa Armstrong, Erin Guymon, Jonah Bollinger and Luis Garcia.

Luis Garcia with his fi rst place award in Web Site DesignCourtesy photos by Margaret Sanderson

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