Media release from Georgia Northwestern Technical College:
Eight Georgia Northwestern Technical College (GNTC) students have qualified to compete in the 2026 Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) Collegiate National Leadership Conference in Las Vegas June 6-8.
Ten GNTC students competed, with nine students placing for a total of 13 top-five finishes, during the Georgia State Leadership Conference, which was held March 26-28 in Atlanta. At this annual conference, members of FBLA Collegiate, Georgia Student Government Association (GSGA) and National Technical Honor Society (NTHS) post-secondary chapters gathered for competitive events, leadership workshops, networking and recognition and state officer elections.
“We are incredibly proud of our FBLA Collegiate students for their outstanding performance at the State Leadership Conference,” said Mark Upton, GNTC’s Marketing Management program director and FBLA coordinator. “Earning multiple first-place finishes and securing numerous top-five finishes is a remarkable achievement that reflects their hard work, dedication and talent.”
“Beyond their competitive success, our students fully embraced every opportunity by participating in workshops, engaging in conference events and representing GNTC with professionalism, discipline and class,” Upton explained. “They have set a high standard of excellence and truly exemplify what it means to be leaders in both academics and character.”
“This is as many GNTC students with first place finishes and as many students that have qualified for national competitions in quite some time,” he said.
Listed below are FBLA competitors representing GNTC including the student’s name, competition, program, campus and hometown:
First Place
- Alisha Moss, Project Management, Healthcare Billing, Floyd County Campus, Cartersville
- Ashley Weaver, Foundations of Entrepreneurship, Accounting, Whitfield Murray Campus, Chatsworth
- Jared Weaver, Retail Management, Drafting Technology, Whitfield Murray Campus, Chatsworth
- Carmen Webb, Supply Chain Management, Healthcare Management, Whitfield Murray Campus, Rocky Face
Second Place
- Janie Ruiz, Project Management, Business Management, Floyd County Campus, Rome
- Ashley Weaver, Foundations of Hospitality Management, Accounting, Whitfield Murray Campus, Chatsworth
- Carmen Webb, Foundations of Accounting, Healthcare Management, Whitfield Murray Campus, Rocky Face
- Community Service Project: Alisha Moss, Healthcare Billing, Floyd County Campus, Cartersville; Ashley Weaver, Accounting, Whitfield Murray Campus, Chatsworth; and Carmen Webb, Healthcare Management, Whitfield Murray Campus, Rocky Face
Third Place
- Ashley Downs, Foundations of Hospitality Management, Radiologic Technology, Floyd County Campus, Adairsville
- Ashley Downs, Retail Management, Radiologic Technology, Floyd County Campus, Adairsville
- Emily Standridge, Foundations of Management, Business Healthcare Technology, Whitfield Murray Campus, Chatsworth
Fourth Place
- Lorrie Holcombe, Sports Management and Marketing, Business Management, Whitfield Murray Campus, Dalton
Fifth Place
- Kaitlyn Harris, Business Ethics, Paramedicine, Floyd County Campus, LaFayette
- Alisha Moss, Future Business Facilitator, Healthcare Billing, Floyd County Campus, Cartersville
Ashley and Jared Weaver are married; Emily Standridge is their daughter.
Listed below are students representing GNTC who were recognized during the State Awards Program including the student’s name, award program, campus and hometown:
- Ireland Amyx, NTHS Star of Knowledge Award, Welding and Joining Technology, Whitfield Murray Campus, Chatsworth
- Natashia Cooper, GSGA Student Excellence Award, Business Management, Walker County Campus, LaFayette
- Juanita Thompson, GSGA Student Excellence Award, Business Management, Floyd County Campus, Silver Creek
- Ashley Weaver, FBLA Wings of Excellence Pin, Accounting, Whitfield Murray Campus, Chatsworth
- Carmen Webb, FBLA Who’s Who Award, FBLA Wings of Excellence Pin, GSGA Student Excellence Award, Healthcare Management, Whitfield Murray Campus, Rocky Face
GNTC earned FBLA’s Gold Seal Chapter of Merit Award. This program recognizes the top 15% of chapters in the nation.
“Nine students represented GNTC at the NTHS State Leadership Conference. Three students participated in the competitions and Janie Ruiz placed second for Extemporaneous Speech,” said Trish Wiggins, director of Student Engagement at GNTC. “We are proud of these students who worked hard to represent GNTC well.”
GNTC, which re-established its NTHS chapter last fall, won the NTHS Overall Membership Increase Award, with an initial induction of 108 students.
“Our NTHS President Samuel Ort, an Aviation Maintenance Technology student, played an integral role, as he is the one who did the legwork to re-establish the chapter and recruit members,” Wiggins said, adding that Ort resides in Rome and attends the Floyd County Campus.
NTHS advisor Medina Safic, GNTC’s Career Services coordinator, was recognized as NTHS Advisor of the Year.
“This nomination was from our students and included letters of recommendation from the NTHS president and vice president,” Wiggins said. “Medina has worked so hard to get this chapter established and create opportunities for the students to complete Community Service requirements, as well as create an NTHS community of support among its members.”
Future Business Leaders of America is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) education association helping more than 230,000 students to prepare for careers in business and business-related fields. FBLA is headquartered in Reston, Va., and organized on local, state and national levels.
The National Technical Honor Society is an educational non-profit that exists to honor, recognize and empower students and teachers in Career and Technical Education. NTHS serves more than 100,000 active members annually in both secondary and postsecondary chapters across the country.
The Georgia Student Government Association represents the local student government associations and/or local student leadership councils in the technical colleges of the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG). Its purpose is to promote student involvement in the technical colleges by sharing information and by providing assistance to member technical colleges.
In the GNTC photo:
GNTC students (from left) Carmen Webb, Ashley Weaver and Alisha Moss placed second in the FBLA Collegiate Community Service Project chapter competition.
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