SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Public speaking can be highly challenging for teenagers, especially due to a fear of judgment from their peers and lack of experience.
But for Connor Miller, who will be entering his junior year at St. Joseph’s Catholic Academy in Boalsburg this fall, public speaking began early for him — in kindergarten. And practice makes perfect, as he discovered last week at the National Future Business Leaders of America Conference in San Antonio, Texas.
Miller, son of Dr. Stephen and Sarah Miller of State College, earned a 4th place trophy in the Introduction to Public Speaking competition against approximately 130 students from high schools throughout the United States.
Miller composed and delivered a speech on ‘How Students Can Use Social Media Responsibly While Protecting Their Reputation and Making a Positive Impact,’ according to Chad Walsh, Director of Student Activities at St. Joseph’s. Walsh assists FBLA Club Advisor Amy Sharpe. This was the FBLA competition required topic.
The Road to Texas
Miller and about 35 to 40 fellow St. Joseph’s students in grades 9-12 are members of their school’s FBLA club which meets weekly to work on projects.
The students competed at South Hills School of Business & Technology at the regional competition, and top award winners moved to the state level.
In April, Miller placed first in the Pennsylvania FBLA public speaking competition at the state conference in Hershey. Students compete in a preliminary round, and the top 10 compete a second time in the final round. This win enabled him to move on to compete at the national FBLA conference, which was held in Texas this year.
This was the second time he qualified for the national contest.
Last year, as a freshman, he earned a third-place medal at the state level in Hershey to qualify for nationals, but due to a scheduling conflict was unable to attend.
To prepare for the competition, Miller practiced his speech many times.
Practice Makes Perfect
“I was doing it in front of a mirror, reviewing it on a car ride, or even going through it while shooting a basketball in my backyard,” Miller said. “My family helped me by listening to countless renditions of the speech, giving me feedback, and posing practice questions.”
Miller said that, since kindergarten, he has participated in many different public speaking events and has practiced presenting skills for as long as he can remember. He chose to compete in the Intro to Public Speaking category because it was the best way to use his talents in a competitive event.
“Connor’s passion for public speaking is evident in his success at the regional, state and national levels of competition,” Sharpe said.
The FBLA Club at St. Joseph’s is rather young, as its chapter has only been around for about five years, according to Walsh. FBLA helps prepare students for careers in business, finance, and management. Members can participate in over 70 different competitive events, ranging from objective tests and public speaking to coding and graphic design presentations.
Since its beginning, the St. Joe’s chapter has had other students qualify for nationals, but they did not place. Miller is the highest national medalist the school has had so far.
“Our tiny little school, even though we are capable of big things, it’s nice to see,” Walsh said.
