Since its creation, Yorba Linda High School’s Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) chapter has been the largest it has ever been. With over 15 placements, countless new memories, and new leadership campaigns, YL FBLA successfully represented themselves at the California State Leadership Conference (SLC). From April 9th to the 12th, members competed on the state level of each of their undertakings: completing objective tests, delivering strong presentations, campaigning for large-scale positions. Most of all, each member came out of the conference with new insights, opportunities, and most importantly, memories that may very well define their years as a Yorba Linda High School student.

Grace Peng (12), the current president of YL FBLA chapter views the event as a representation of “the culmination of an entire year of dedication and hard work” she continues, “as president, I had the opportunity to witness our chapter’s growth and see each member develop their skills and confidence.” Ms. Waltemeyer (S), one of the advisors of YL FBLA, cherishes “the small moments [she gets] to have with students during the whole event, whether it’s encouraging them and before their event, or even better after their event at state, you get to cheer them on when they’re on that stage.”

Undoubtedly, the conference’s success is collectively attributed to the efforts of the advisors, board members, and competitors. Grace describes that not only her and the competitive events team “organized multiple study sessions to help students prepare for their events,” but they had to ensure that “with such a large group, coordination required a lot of attention to detail.” As an effect, keeping track of attendance and monitoring any schedule changes was imperative and “communicated clearly to every member.”

Ms. Waltemeyer emphasizes that “preparing for State Leadership Conference as an advisor starts in the summer,” she continues, “once we actually become a chapter, get our charter approved from FBLA and ASB, and get all of our systems flowing again, all of our members are already locked in.”

During the conference, board members continued to support competitors in the chapter. Ryan Leu (11) describes how he “spread the word about meeting spots, checked members in, and helped underclassmen study.” Tyler Leu (12) was in charge of “ taking pictures and videos to capture the memories.” He emphasizes how his goal was to capture “different moments and highlight members who were able to place on stage.” Both Ryan and Tyler mention how they successfully saved 50 seats at the awards ceremony as soon as the doors. “It was some serious business,” according to Ryan.

Not only did YL FBLA members prepare for their own chapter, but Vanessa Xu (11), the public relations officer of California FBLA’s Southern Section for 2025 and 2026, campaigned to become the President of the section, which encompasses FBLA chapters from Orange, Los Angeles, and San Diego. At the previous conference, she was voted into the position of Southern Section President, and was officially inducted at SLC. Her new position “is more about leadership and organization rather than just execution. The responsibility is significantly higher, but it also gives [her] more impact on the direction of the section,” she describes, “I want to launch a chapter spotlight where chapters share their successes and tips monthly and create a mentorship program that pairs experienced chapters with newer or unexperienced ones.”

The 2025-26 President of the Southern Section, Mara Grepo (11), a student at Oxford Academy, campaigned for and became the FBLA California State President, represents all FBLA chapters in the state of California. As State President, she hopes to–like Vanessa–“create more mentorship opportunities within California,” she continues, “for me, the professional and personal relationships I’ve built throughout the years have shaped my journey. I want to give members of FBLA the same guidance and opportunities for guidance that I received.”

Evidently, YL FBLA’s participation at SLC was a success. Jasmine Moawad (10) enjoyed how she “was able to network with people from other schools more.” Others, like Ryan and Tyler, valued spending time with their friends between events. Tyler highlights how they “had a lot of fun calming our nerves and passing the time by talking together and playing games. It helped me feel ready to confidently take my test.”

This year, SLC brought countless new memories and experiences for YL FBLA. With an attendance of around 3200 students from all over California, the learning opportunities were truly endless.