High School Students Honored at Business Leadership Competition

Commack students were among those recognized by local officials for winning a Young Professionals Chamber of Commerce competition.

The event was a program of the Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce, which hosted its 12th Annual Business Leadership Competition on Wednesday, Dec. 3, in Patchogue.

This year more than 380 students participated from 21 high schools: Shore, Calhoun, Commack, Connetquot, Farmingdale, Garden City, Half Hollow Hills East, Half Hollow Hills West, Harborfields, Hauppauge, Huntington, Milliken Technical Center, North Shore, Northport, Oyster Bay, Sachem East, Sachem North, St. Dominic’s, Walt Whitman, Wantagh and Wilson Technological Center.

A luncheon and awards ceremony followed the competition.

The competition provided students with the opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge through presentations in retail marketing, human resources, graphic design, hospitality services, travel and tourism, entertainment marketing, public Relations, not-for-profit fundraising, sports management, entrepreneurship, and job interview.

2014 YPCC Business Leadership Competition Winners

Retail Marketing Team A

• First Place: Travis Ho and Colin Casaccio, Commack
• Second Place: Amanda Semmelmeier and Celia Giacoma, Harborfields

Retail Marketing Team B

• First Place: Michaela Bandrow and Carly Bivona, Northport
• Second Place: Marissa Ciminera and Braelyn Demitrieos, Hauppauge

Human Resources Team A

• First Place: Giovanna Calderon, Commack
• Second Place: Zayan Ahmed and Jack Kronrad, Half Hollow Hills East

Human Resources Team B

• First Place: Sarankan Subramaniam and Calvin Lui, Commack
• Second Place: Jordan Eichholz and Tyler London, Half Hollow Hills East

Graphic Design Team A

• First Place: Sydnie Wittenberg and Melanie Wolff, Wilson Tech
• Second Place: Michael Sivin and Mustafa Ebad, Half Hollow Hills East

Graphic Design Team B

• First Place: Scott Salkind and Isabell Gefner, Commack
• Second Place: Mia Tallerico and Sean Delgado Calhoun

Hospitality Services Team A

• First Place: Ryan Porteus and Patrick MaGroarty, St. Dominic’s
• Second Place: Samta Abrole, Half Hollow Hills East

Hospitality Services Team B

• First Place: Stephanie Tavolaro and Casey Keenan, Commack
• Second Place: Rachel Vaughan and Joanne Nguyen, Walt Whitman

Sports Management Team A

• First Place: Ian Leskody and Michael Kratochvil, Harborfields
• Second Place: Stefan Breskin, Huntington
• Honorable Mention: Noelle Mandery and Marc Gull, Northport

Sports Management Team B

• First Place: Matt Sadiker and Peter Donohue, Commack
• Second Place: Cyrus Najmi and Zach Franco, Half Hollow Hills East

Travel and Tourism Team A

• First Place: Greg Maliglowka and Liam Minerva, Half Hollow Hills West
• Second Place: Tyler Dupont and Anna Kippley, Northport
• Honorable Mention: Kayla Balling, Farmingdale

Travel and Tourism Team B

• First Place: Lauren DiSalvo and Laxshika Reveendran, Commack
• Second Place: Jessy Certain. Bay Shore

Entrepreneurship Team A

• First Place: Joseph Van Gostein, Walt Whitman
• Second Place: Matt Avallone and Brandon Nomberg, Half Hollow Hills West

Entrepreneurship Team B

• First Place: Karli Manko and Alexis Carey, Commack
• Second Place: Alexa Friedman and Syndey Gilison, Northport

Entertainment Marketing Team A

• First Place: Blake Ferns and Chris Purcell, Northport
• Second Place: Jacob Liss and Matt Hagler, Half Hollow Hills East

Entertainment Marketing Team B

• First Place: Jack Cooper and Jake Rejwan, Half Hollow Hills East
• Second Place: Anthony Constantini and Brian Jones, Farmingdale

Public Relations Team A

• First Place: Andrew George and Jasmine Williams, Oyster Bay
• Second Place: Jillian Weiss and Michael Guaglione, Commack

Public Relations Team B

• First Place: Jennie Peteka and Emily Chisholm, Northport
• Second Place: Joseph Davolio and Matthew Dorfman, Half Hollow Hills East

Not-for-Profit Fundraising Team A

• First Place: Brian Piccola and Ashley Jalazzo, Commack
• Second Place: Jenna Cammarata and Larissa Izzo Garden City

Not-for-Profit Fundraising Team B

• First Place: Sahil Varma and Bradley Weltmann, Half Hollow Hills East
• Second Place: Kathryn Ryan and Kristen Shore, Harborfields

Job Interview 9th and 10th Grade Team A

• First Place: Lena Gluck, Oyster Bay
• Second Place: John Unser, Northport

Job Interview 9th and 10th Grade Team B

• First Place: Olivia Sebade, Hauppauge
• Second Place: Emily Podlewski, Farmingdale

Job Interview 11th and 12th Grade Team A

• First Place: Nicholas Orlowski, Oyster Bay
• Second Place: Matt Fonelli, Half Hollow Hills East

Job Interview 11th and 12th Grade Team B

• First Place: Brooke Miccio, Northport
• Second Place: Christopher Mickens, Milliken Tech
• Honorable mention: Connor Brown, Garden City

Job Interview Life Skills

• First Place: Kelly Curran, Garden City
• Second Place: Catherine Federico, Hauppauge
• Honorable Mention: Brenden Higgins, Wilson Tech; Mark Bacco, Hauppauge;
• Jessica Bauer, Wilson Tech

The panel of judges included:

Robert Ansell, Silverman Acampora LLP; Greg Atherton, Aide to Assemb. Chad Lupinacci; Kevin Beck, Astoria Bank; Les Bluestone, Blue Sea Construction Company; Sara Bluestone, Leadership Huntington; Andrea Bonilla, Renaissance Downtowns; Gil Brindley, H2M Architects + Engineers; Keith Brown, Brown and Altman LLP; Bob Budah,Park Shore Day Camp and School; Paige Carbone, St. Joseph’s College; Vince Casillo, MaryJayne Casillo Foundation; Jennifer Cassidy, People’s United Bank; Karyn Cernera Bush, Briarcliffe College; Ken Christensen, Leadership Huntington; Rogerlyn Cipriano, Angels for Warriors; Michael DeCristofaro, John W. Engeman Theater; Karen Fischer, Home Depot; Trudy Fitzsimmons, Leadership Huntington; Carolyn Gallogly,PhD, St. Joseph’s College; Kevin Gersh, Gersh Academy; Michele Gervat, American Heart Association; Lorraine Greenwald PhD, Farmingdale State College; Jenna Herzog, Have a Heart Childrens Cancer Society; Eileen Jahn PhD, St. Joseph’s College; Donna Jannine, Zimmerman/Edelson Inc.; Kate Kimmel, Briarcliffe College; Jack Krueger, Dowling College; Christian Laskaros, The Inn at Fox Hollow; Maureen Leslie, Adelphi University; Jessica Lucas, Bethpage Federal Credit Union; Joe Maddalone, Power Strategies; Jim McGowan, Adelphi University; Maria Misko, Digho Graphic Arts; Bill Mitchell; Diane Palma, Digho Graphic Arts; Dan Panico, Councilman Brookhaven; Evan Proios, Briarcliffe College; Brad Rosen, Station Sports; Gina Sansivero, FSR, Inc.; Brian Rothschild, Adelphi University; Leg. Steven Stern; Merrill Zorn, Zorn’s Catering

This year’s sponsors included:

Adelphi University, Astoria Bank, Briarcliffe College, Brown Altman LLP, Digho Image Marketing, Farmingdale State College, H2M Architects + Engineers, Huntington YMCA, Joe Maddalone Power Strategies, JW Creations, Len Marks Photography, Long Islander Newspapers, MaryJayne Casillo Foundation, Oyster Bay Rotary, Park Shore Country Day Camp and School, Silverman Acampora LLP, Sunrise Outdoor Advertising, TenHaagen Financial Group, St. Joseph’s College, Walsdorf Insurance Agency, and Zorn’s Catering.

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