The buzz out of Enumclaw High School is its student store, The Hive, has been recognized as one of the top 25 in the nation.

The School-Based Enterprise (SBE) at Enumclaw High School recently earned Gold Level Certification and will be recognized at DECA’s International Career Development Conference in Anaheim, Calif.

Enumclaw High senior Melissa Sherman is also making the trip to California after winning the employment acquisition competition at the state DECA conference March 7-9 in Bellevue.

To earn the state’s top honor, Sherman presented judges with a career portfolio and then had to go through the rigor of interviewing for an officie assistance job. She and others went through two interviews that were judged by people from the industry.

Sherman said she had the computer and office expertise needed for the position, but also displayed quick thinking and excellent communication, planning, customer service and people skills.

“They are skills that apply to any job you go to,” said Sherman, who plans to study nursing at Highline Community College in the fall.

Juniors Allison Smith and Breanna Flaquinti, with the assistance of adviser Carol Jackson, were responsible for the student store entry. The school store at Enumclaw High School has operated an SBE for 20 years and this is the first year they’ve earned Gold Level Certification achievement.

School-based Enterprises help prepare students for the transition from school to work or college. For many students, they provide the first work experience; for others, they provide an opportunity to build management, supervision and leadership skills. While some in the education community have recently discovered the value of school-based enterprises, marketing educators and DECA advisers have used them as a teaching tool for more than four decades.

School stores can be certified at three levels: bronze, silver or gold. In order to apply for the certification, SBEs must submit documentation showing how they have achieved standards that are outlined in the certification guidelines. After the documentation is submitted, a review committee evaluates the documentation to determine which level of certification has been achieved.

Smith and Flaquinti produced an 84-page document analyzing EHS’s student store and the experience it provides for students. The document covered 12 areas of study including accounting, promotions, merchandizing, customer service and product selection.

This isn’t the first time The Hive, which started two decades ago with students selling cookies from a classroom, has been recognized nationally. Jackson and the store were written up in a national vocational training publication and Jackson has written a manual on the operation and implementation of a school-based business, which is used as an example in DECA’s Best Practices.

It’s the hands-on experience stores provide students that makes them such a valuable asset.

“It takes a lot more to run the store than meets the eye,” Smith said of the real-world job experience.

For example, the store leaders didn’t take into consideration tax, shipping and delivery costs when pricing some products in the fall, and saw a drop in profit. Stores also don’t turn a profit if employees are slipping friends free items or have purchased products that aren’t moving off the shelves. It’s an opportunity for students to put what they learn in the classroom, the store is tied to EHS’s marketing operations class, into a hands-on experience. The Hive also ties in with the high school’s Transition Program, where special education students also pick up work experience.

Store leaders know what’s hot and what’s not and it’s constantly changing. Right now, Smith and Flaquinti said, pizza, Cup O’Noodles, Jones Soda and Arizona Tea are selling. Three Musketeers bars sit. And it’s not just food. With the barrage of winter sports teams that went to state, The Hive saw an increase in sales of its spirit wear and products.

Competition also plays a role. The Hive competes directly on campus with a latte stand started by another student organization and the cafeteria. So there’s been an added emphasis on display, promotion and customer service.

“They learn a lot of life lessons,” Jackson said.

DECA is not-for-profit student organization preparing its membership for careers in marketing, management and entrepreneurship. DECA operates in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, Canada, Germany and Mexico and has more than 185,000 members nationwide.

Reach Brenda Sexton at bsexton@courierherald.com or 360-802-8206.