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A portion of Arjun's winning essay:
She let out an excited scream, shook my hand for a brief second, and then decided that a hug would better suit the situation. She gave me a pat on the back as I made the walk through the Grand Ballroom of the Cherry Hill Hilton, up onto the stage to receive my trophy for winning the state title in the International Business Plan event. The video showed a beaming high school student, but the only thing I was thinking of one thing: I had just found something I wanted to spend the rest of my life doing, simply because I had made the most of one opportunity; one that would bring me closer to the most inspirational person in my life. The woman who let out a scream and hugged me was my Business and Marketing Education teacher Mrs. Carol Rolewicz. It was her first year teaching at Hopewell Valley Central High School, and it was my first year in the Marketing Education program. I entered the class in September as a sophomore just hoping to find my way in high school, after a mostly lack-luster freshman year, and she would give me the opportunity. By late November of my sophomore year I had been thoroughly enjoying my Marketing class. Mrs. Rolewicz had been talking about an organization called DECA, which develops “future leaders in marketing, management, and entrepreneurship”. I was interested in a particular competition called the International Business Plan event, which asked participants to conceive of an international business, and write a business plan detailing the business’ operational and financial plans. I was only a sophomore, and the winner of the event almost always was a senior, thus, I approached her about it to see if she thought it was something I should pursue. She enthusiastically encouraged me to participate, calling it a phenomenal opportunity, for I had nothing to lose. She then told me something that she would repeat one hundred times to me. “Everything in the world is related to business, and astute business people have at least one thing in common: the ability to take advantage of opportunity.” The New Year came, and I was working every day on perfecting the plan for the competition at the end of February; at which I would present it to a panel of venture capitalists who served as judges. Never before had I pursued something so passionately, for Mrs. Rolewicz gave me entrepreneurial strategy and financial analysis books every week, and I began to enjoy reading them not as a requirement, but as a hobby. As the week of the competition approached, I spent many hours everyday with Mrs. Rolewicz re-reading every page of the plan, closing every possible loop-hole, and preparing for the argument of the venture capitalists. The day of the competition she sent me an e-mail concerning my plan that gave me all the confidence I needed to deliver the presentation: “Arjun--this is a winner”. Opportunity continued to present itself to me throughout the rest of my time in high school. I entered as many competitions as a member of DECA is allowed to participate in, and thanks to the inspiration of Mrs. Rolewicz, had found that there are opportunities everywhere, but it is those who pursue them passionately that will achieve the most, for in my case it wasn’t about winning a state championship, but finding a path in life. My involvement in DECA let me see that I had a love for business. But only later did I realize that an undergraduate business education was best for me. I had always had a curiosity for the business related intricacies of our world, in which business is ubiquitous. I wanted to do something few are able to accomplish but many attempt to, and I knew that business would best fill that aspiration. During my internship as an Account Representative at a local bank I realized that I loved working with people. Through my International Business Plan competitions I found that I have a passion for finance and entrepreneurship. Thus, Stern became the perfect school for me to attend.
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