Jacob Abrego walks out of his presentation looking at once relieved and confident. The 18-year-old senior from Albert Lea High School has just finished giving a presentation on a business plan for his already-existing business as a DJ.

While Abrego has been in this work for four years, he is finding out he has a lot more to learn about business. But he says that through Business Professionals of America (BPA) he has gained a wealth of knowledge to use now and in the future.

&uot;There is so much I have to learn,&uot; he said. &uot;These presentations and competitions make you learn first hand about business. They ask you what your business plan is, what your angle is, who you are targeting. It’s fun but it’s also stressful.&uot;

Abrego is one of almost 145 students who participated Wednesday in a Region 9 BPA competition at the Riverland Community College Albert Lea campus. Students from Albert Lea, Century, John Marshall, Lakeville, Medford and Stewartville high schools all participated.

The BPA is national association for students interested in business. It teaches them about different facets of the business and professional world.

&uot;Kids get to take their knowledge that they get in the classroom and apply it to the competition,&uot; said Sharon Morlock, the advisor for the Stewartville BPA chapter and the organizer of Wednesday’s competition.

The day’s events were mostly done by teams from the schools. They included: administrative support, e-commerce, economic research project, financial analyst, global marketing, parliamentary procedure, presentation management, small business management and Web site development.

Brooke Wuerflein, 15, and Kelly Krieger, 15, both sophomores at Albert Lea High School, were in a business-skills competition.

Each team is given a packet when they walk in the door. The packet is filled with papers and four assignments. The assignments can include putting together any kind of business or professional document a company might need to make, including business letters, labels, certificates and fliers.

&uot;We just have to know how these things are done before hand,&uot; explained Kreiger.

While the timed task may seem daunting, Wuerflein and Kreiger were confident before their presentation. Sipping coffee and answering questions before their competition, they flipped casually through papers.

The two had been here before and, as freshman, had advanced to the state competition.

&uot;It’s a lot of fun,&uot; said Wuerflein. &uot;I’ll definitely keep doing this throughout high school.&uot;

Albert Lea BPA advisor Debbie Monson, who teaches business at the high school, said the students develop many skills in these competitions.

&uot;It helps them to gain confidence to give presentations in an environment that they aren’t used to,&uot; she said. &uot;It also helps them to make connections with other people and develop networks. Most importantly it gives them a chance to apply what they’ve learned in the classroom to a real-life situation.&uot;

&uot;They walk away from these competitions with a much better knowledge of the professional world and a better sense about themselves,&uot; Monson said.

The next Region 9 tournament will be held in January, at which the competitions will be between individuals.