Maine West students take top prizes in entrepreneurial competition

Four students from Maine West High School in Des Plaines won first-place awards in a statewide entrepreneurial competition sponsored by DECA, District 207 officials recently announced.

Formerly known as Distributive Education Clubs of America, DECA "prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality and management," according to its mission statement.

The first-place winners were:

• Sabrina Bukvarevic, for a startup business plan.

• Riya Patel, for a community awareness project.

• Juhi Soni and Mohnish Soni, for a business growth plan.

Additionally, other students from Maine West and Maine South High in Park Ridge finished in the Top 10 in their categories. The contest was held virtually.

Other contest winners from Maine West were:

• Bailey Saunders, third place for a franchise business plan.

• Angela Tran, who earned a Top 10 finish for an international business plan.

• Carlos Hernandez, who earned a Top 10 finish in principles of marketing.

The winners from Maine South were Anastasia Brow and Christina Paxhia, both of whom scored 6th-place prizes in an economics-related category.