The South Dakota Association of Career and Technical Education is pleased to announce that South Dakota Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America, under the leadership of Kris Brockhoft, South Dakota state adviser, has been selected as the Award of Merit winner.

This award recognizes an organization outside the field of career and technical education for the highest meritorious contributions to the improvement, promotion, development, and progress of career and technical education.

Brockhoft, of Brookings, accepted this award at the awards recognition banquet on July 28 in Rapid City at the SDACTE conference.

FCCLA is a national Career and Technical Student Organization for students in Family and Consumer Sciences education in public and private schools through grade 12. FCCLA offers intra-curricular resources and opportunities for students to pursue careers that support families. Since 1946, FCCLA members in our state have been making a difference in their families, careers, and communities by addressing important personal, work, and societal issues through Family and Consumer Sciences education.

Members have the opportunity to attend a variety of leadership training opportunities. Fall leadership training in October provides participation at different levels.

Members can begin working on career development projects like Students Taking Action with Recognition and other events during the school year. The state is divided into six regions where a regional meeting is hosted by the state officer for the region. The state conference is in April in Sioux Falls.

The National Leadership Conference was in Seattle this summer, where members competed in various events they qualified for at state or in online events. One of the focus areas is community service where local chapters address a need in their community. Involvement in FCCLA offers members the opportunity to expand their leadership potential and develop skills for life — planning, goal setting, problem-solving, decision making, and interpersonal communication — necessary in the home and workplace. In South Dakota this past year there were 66 chapters with a total membership of 1,800 members.