Guest post by Joslin C + Poorvi P, OOHS Junior Marketing students + DECA members

We got the opportunity to interview a fellow Olentangy Orange alumni, Parker Castillo! Parker was a part of our OOHS DECA and marketing program. He graduated from Miami University in 2021 and is currently working as an Internal Sales Analyst at Nationwide Financial. Let’s look into Parker’s experience with DECA and the advice he has for DECA students!

Parker was very involved in the DECA program and showed a great passion in business. He shares, “With DECA I did the state competitions, we had a business luncheon where I was able to speak at and meet a few business leaders in the community.” He also served as Orange DECA’s Vice President during the 2016-2017 school year. Parker shares that DECA was not only a great starting point for his business career, but that “it was also great for all of the relationships that were built, I still talk to people I did DECA with.” This was his favorite part about DECA and his experience in the program.

Additionally, Parker shares the skills he learned from marketing and DECA extended beyond his time at Orange. He says,  “DECA allowed me to think outside of the box and not be dead set on a certain trajectory/pathway of where my professional career will go, which was especially useful in college and post-grad.” 

We ended this interview with some advice that Parker would like to share with DECA students and students wanting to pursue a business career. He says, “My advice for DECA students is that it’s okay to not know what you’d like to do, pivoting and learning new roles in the business world is not a negative thing, I changed my major many times, I changed my position a few times at Nationwide and it only allowed me to network more and learn more traits.”

Lastly, he suggests,  “money is just a vehicle for making experiences, money will come, but life will fly by.”

Thank you Parker for sharing your DECA experience and wish you all the best with your career!