What is DECA

DECA, a national association of marketing education students, provides teachers and members with educational and leadership development activities to merge with the education classroom instructional program. DECA is not extracurricular; it is an integral part of the classroom instructional program. DECA chapters attract students who are interested in preparing for entrepreneurial, marketing or management careers. While DECA membership consists primarily of students in marketing programs, membership extends also to alumni and to professionals in marketing education and in marketing teacher education. Working hand-in-hand with the education and business communities, DECA’s goal is for its student members to develop a "career success kit" to carry into their business and personal lives after graduation; one that includes:

• Occupational competencies needed for career in marketing, management and entrepreneurship

• Leadership abilities

• Social and business etiquette

• Understanding and appreciation of civic responsibility

• Ethical behavior in personal and business relationships

• Understanding the role of our free enterprise system in the global economy 

To accomplish this, DECA utilizes on-the-job experience, chapter projects, and a program of competency-based competitive events in specific marketing occupational areas. These events emphasize academic and vocational excellence as building blocks for successful marketing and management careers and demonstrate the direct relationship between marketing education and the real needs of business and industry. Each year more than 110,000 students participate in the competitions on the local, state and national levels.
A non-profit organization, DECA is governed by an elected Board of Directors. The National Advisory Board made up of representatives of major U.S. corporations and businesses who support DECA’s mission, and the Congressional Advisory Board made up of members of the U.S. Congress, offer members support and guidance. Since July 1991, the organization is known by its commonly recognized acronym, DECA, accompanied by the tag line, "An Association of Marketing Students". The familiar diamond DECA logo has been updated; newly designed to suggest the strength, stability, and forward-looking attitude of the association and its 180,000 student members.