Founding a Collegiate DECA chapter is a challenging yet rewarding process. There are plenty of ways to get your journey started during the 2024-2025 membership year, so let’s look at the top 5 ways to get your brand-new chapter on the map.
1) Join the Brand New Founders Forum Calls
Dreaming of bringing Collegiate DECA to your campus? Founders Forum Calls are just what you need! Connect with future chapter founders from around the globe, share experiences and get the support you need to make your chapter thrive. Founders Forum Calls will occur quarterly throughout the 2024-2025 membership year, led by your Collegiate DECA Executive Officer Team! While being a part of the Founders Forum is a fun way to meet other founders, you can also use this opportunity to gain valuable first-year leadership skills. The first call of the year will be on Monday, August 5th @ 8 pm EST and can be found here.
2) Make Contact with the Administration and Students at your School
Whether it's your first year or maybe even your last, get your name out there and find like-minded individuals who would be good on your chapter officer team. My biggest advice for those freshmen working through the process: do NOT just put people on your team that you meet during the first week. Take the time to find the right people over your first month or so who would do a good job and share many of DECA’s wonderful values. By creating a strong leadership foundation from the beginning (with a great advisor), you will set your chapter up for success for years. When you are working with your administration, make sure to discuss all of the things that a DECA chapter can do for your school. In addition, make sure to find out about the process of getting a club approved on your campus. This was something I did MONTHS in advance when I walked in as a freshman and helped ramp up the process.
3) Start to Review the DECA Inc. Chapter Application
This site has all the information about starting a chapter. Make sure to start collecting everything as you set out to begin your chapter. Before filling out this application, make sure that you have confirmation from your school that you can be a new chapter! You MUST have permission from your school before finalizing your chapter status with DECA Inc., so do this early if possible. If your chapter is within a Collegiate DECA chartered association, you must also obtain their approval before beginning this application.
4) Get People Excited about your New Chapter
Whether promoting yourselves through social media or word-of-mouth, make sure everyone on campus knows about the upcoming opportunities that your chapter will soon provide. Begin crafting an outreach strategy to reach your university's current, new and prospective students. By preparing for the year ahead with excitement and extra effort at the beginning, your chapter will soon be a success when it hits the ground running.
5) Celebrate your First Year with an Inaugural Callout Meeting
Get as many of your friends and fellow students together to talk about the benefits of joining DECA, the wonderful year ahead and just how much everyone can learn from being involved. Being able to grow your chapter during its first year can be challenging, but with a little callout to get things started, your membership will increase in no time. Take the opportunity to invite faculty, administration and stakeholders from the local community to show them that you mean business. Keep those members involved throughout your first year, and keep them in the loop by adding them to the membership system as professional members!
Throughout your first year as a chapter founder, there will be many obstacles to mount and hoops to jump through. But no need to fear! Your Collegiate executive officer team is here to help with anything that you may need through the process. Do not hesitate to reach out to me or one of our wonderful vice presidents if you need help or have a burning question. We love to see new chapters join the roster, but we also love it even more to see them succeed!
So, get out there, explore the unknown and start a Collegiate DECA chapter today!
