Additional reporting by Om Khandekar.

When seniors Bhushan Balagar and Sid Satya joined MVHS FBLA in their freshman year, they did not have their eyes set on a section or state office position. In fact, they didn’t even know these positions existed. But four years later, they both have gone beyond what they expected to from the business club. The two have since served as Bay Section officers and now hold positions as State FBLA officers. Balagar serves as the state secretary-treasurer and Satya holds the position of President of the Bay Section, which doubles as a state vice president position.

Balagar and Satya were both inspired to join officer teams outside of MV FBLA in their sophomore years. They were mentored by MVHS class of 2015 alumnus Priyanka Achalu, who served on the Bay Section officer team as the Parliamentarian.

“Freshman year, I had no idea there were positions at the Bay Section level,” Satya said. “But I went to the Bay Section conference and Priyanka encouraged me to run [for Bay Section office].”

In his junior year, Balagar earned the position of Bay Section Parliamentarian, where he would organize conferences and workshops and ensure that section meetings ran in an efficient manner. Satya served as the Section Public Relations officer. His job entailed marketing the organization as well as assisting in organizing conferences.

“I realized that I really wanted to be the Bay Section president. I had a lot of ideas for [the position],” Satya said. “That was my goal, even when I ran for PR, so when it came to deciding what position to run for after, it was pretty easy.”

Satya and Balagar work alongside the rest of the state team, which includes students from Cupertino HS and the rest of the state to organize conferences and accomplish their programs of work, or specific goals each officer team tackles.

“[The program of work] consists of goals from the beginning of the year that we include in our campaigns,” Balagar said. “These relate to improving different resources we provide for chapters across California.”

This year, the team looks to establish a parent network across the state, update guides for funding for chapters and run successful conferences at the state and national levels. In addition to this, Satya and Balagar want to use their officer positions to guide MV FBLA members in competitions and their futures in the club.

“We want to make sure that members have the same opportunities as us,” Satya said. “We are seeing that more people from MV FBLA want to run for section office or even national office. It’s not what MVHS was known for, but it is something we are becoming known for.”