Advancing to compete in the national FBLA Collegiate competition are SIU students, back row left to right, Sidney Tovar, Presley Coale, Fern Lyon and Halen Dade, with Makayla Monical seated in front. (Photo provided)
March 06, 2026
SIU students advance to national FBLA competition taking eight top prizes at state
CARBONDALE, Ill. — A team of Southern Illinois University Carbondale students recently demonstrated their business-world expertise by bringing home a remarkable eight prizes from the recent Future Business Leaders of America state conference.
Every participating student from the SIU chapter of Future Business Leaders of America won the right to compete at the national competition on June 5 in Las Vegas by placing in the top three spots at state. That includes five first place wins for the Salukis as they tested their prowess against students from colleges and universities across the state at the Illinois FBLA Collegiate held at Lewis and Clark Community College in Godfrey, Illinois.
“The SIU Carbondale students delivered an outstanding performance in their competitive events at the Illinois FBLA State Conference,” said Tracy Lake, adviser for the SIU FBLA chapter. “They demonstrated exceptional preparation, focus and determination and it paid off as they earned top awards in the state. Their achievement reflects their hard work and commitment to excellence.”
And the winners are
Makayla Monical, a sophomore accounting major from Noble, Illinois, was a quadruple winner taking first place in foundations of accounting, business law and retail management. She also teamed with Presley Coale and Sidney Tovar to win the hospitality management case competition. Coale is a sophomore accounting major from Lincoln, Illinois, while Tovar is a senior hospitality, travel and event management major from Cape Girardeau, Missouri.
Tovar also earned a second-place finish in customer service and third in business law while Coale added a second-place win in foundations of economics.
In addition, Halen Dade, a junior art major from Cape Girardeau, Missouri, specializing in communication design, and Fern Lynn, a junior communication design/graphic design major from Willowbrook, Illinois, paired to win first place in the digital design and communication case competition.