Elijah Johnson is a junior at Blaine High School, who is enrolled in their Center for Engineering, Mathematics and Science (CEMS) program. He is also a three-year member of BPA who has served as Blaine’s Chapter treasurer, the President of Region 4, and is now your 2021-2022 Secondary Division National President.  Elijah was fortunate enough to reach out to Amy Schreyer, the 2018-2019 National Vice President who was also from Minnesota, for some advice on the election process.  Amy encouraged him on his journey and offered some wonderful insight on the process.  Although this year was different from her experiences since it was virtual, Amy knew what it was like to not only run for National Office twice, but also what it’s really like being a National Officer. Her advice was a big help in navigating the election process start to finish.

We asked Elijah to share with us what he learned from this entire experience.  You can also see more of his campaign and view those of the other candidates at https://candidates.bpa.org/.

Why did you want to run for a National Officer position?  I ran for National BPA office because I truly care about our organization. BPA has done a lot to help me grow as a person, and I’d love to help foster the same change that I experienced, within others.

Tell us about the overall virtual campaign experience.  The campaign process was fairly long. There were a lot of steps that I had to go through just to become an official candidate. But once I became one, I’d definitely say a highlight of the campaign process was the campaign rally, where I was asked 80 questions back to back. It was a little nerve-wracking, but apparently, I guess I did well.

What has been your biggest takeaway from the campaign experience? The campaign process has definitely taught me how to talk to people. I’ve always been a bit of an extrovert, but this experience has really shown me how to connect and communicate with people, within both professional and informal settings.

What do you hope to accomplish as the Secondary National President?  One of the biggest priorities during my term will be finding ways to connect BPA members together, no matter where they are in the world. As our organization continues to expand and reach students in new countries, I think it’s imperative that the Executive Council does its best to support our new family members, as well as our existing United States local, regional, and State officers.

Show some support and stay current with BPA information by connecting with Elijah on Instagram @elijahjbpa.

Business Professionals of America is the leading CTSO (Career and Technical Student Organization) for students pursuing careers in business management, office administration, information technology and other related career fields.  Our Minnesota State Representative to the Foundation for Student Organizations is Steve Weber.

Nationally, BPA has 43,000 members in over 2,300 chapters in 23 states. In Minnesota we have over 1,100 members in  eight regions.  BPA is a co-curricular organization that supports business and information technology educators by offering co-curricular exercises based on national standards.  For Minnesota information about joining or starting a new chapter contact our State Executive Director, Jackie Schiller.

The Workplace Skills Assessment Program (WSAP) prepares students to succeed and assesses real-world business skills and problem solving abilities in finance, management, IT and computer applications. It is BPA's showcase program and facilitates students demonstrating their career skills at regional, state and national conferences in 72 competitive events, including virtual opportunities. 

For more info about our program, please contact Minnesota's CEAC (Classroom Educator's Advisory Council) representative, Lynn O'Driscoll.