Gravette High School members of the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America organization traveled to the 2026 Arkansas FCCLA State Leadership Conference last week to take part in competitions of leadership, creativity, and career readiness. Held April 9–10 at the Hot Springs Convention Center, the event brought together more than 1,400 high school students and advisors from across the state.
FCCLA is a national student organization focused on leadership development, career preparation, and community service for students interested in family and consumer sciences. Through competitive STAR Events (Students Taking Action with Recognition), students are challenged to tackle real-world issues, develop business plans, and showcase their professional skills.
Gravette students brought home numerous medals across a wide variety of disciplines. Eight of these outstanding projects earned students the opportunity to advance and represent Arkansas at the upcoming National Leadership Conference this summer.
Advancing to the National Leadership Conference
The following students earned top honors in their respective categories and have qualified for Nationals:
Gold Medalists
Holden Jeffries (Senior) - Job Interview: Demonstrated outstanding professional skills during a rigorous mock job interview competition.
Karen Miller, Allison Arrue, and Samantha Maberry (Juniors) - Entrepreneurship Developed a comprehensive, start-to-finish business plan for a new tea shop.
Silver Medalists
Autumn Brown (Senior) - AI for Impact: Presented ways to leverage Artificial Intelligence technology to address food insecurity in communities.
Katey Stark and Reece Murray (Seniors) - Fashion Design: Designed a decades-inspired fashion line, bringing their vision to life by constructing a physical, runway-ready outfit from their collection.
Sam Moore and Leo Padilla (Seniors) - Interpersonal Communications: Analyzed and presented effective strategies for improving critical workplace relationships, focusing on employee-employee, employee-employer, and employee-consumer dynamics.
State Medalists
These students put in great work to earn state-level recognition for their projects:
Silver Medalists
Keira Ralph (Senior) - Career Investigation: Conducted an in-depth career investigation and presentation on the field of Speech-Language Pathology.
Ella West and Ryon Edwards (Juniors) - Interior Design: Created a complete business plan, material board, and detailed floorplan for a prospective plant shop called "Daylight Designs."
Couri Eden, Logan Hill, and Esme Gibson (Freshmen) - Repurpose and Redesign: Created "Thrift and Stitch," an eco-friendly initiative that upcycles old jeans into durable handbags. The team also developed a full marketing strategy targeting eco-conscious students and parents to provide a sustainable alternative to plastic bags.
Bronze Medalists
Kenzee Roughton and Kaelyn Powell (Juniors) - Focus on Children: For their project, "Confidence in Your Hands," this team addressed childhood low self-esteem by teaching a lesson on positive self-talk to a 4th-grade class at Gravette Upper Elementary. The younger students created interactive "fortune tellers" filled with positive affirmations to help them recognize their personal strengths.
The students who dedicated their time and talents to compete at the state level this year represented the community at a stellar level. Thank you to these outstanding lions for leading with excellence, hard work, and innovation. A special thank you also goes out to their FCCLA advisor, Brooklyn Hilger, for her guidance, support, and dedication to provide opportunities for these students. Congratulations to all of our state medalists, and best of luck to those advancing to Nationals this summer!
