Rohit Iyer and Stephanie Zhang, both of J.P. Stevens High School, are the first two students from the same school to be elected to national office with the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America in the same year. EDISON — This year, two members of the National Executive Council for the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) are not only from the same state, they’re also from the same town and even the same high school. And they are best friends.
Rohit Iyer and Stephanie Zhang, rising seniors at J.P. Stevens High School, have been active participants in the national family focused student leadership and career development organization throughout their high school careers.
And the friends were thrilled to find out that they both secured posts at the national level.
“I was jumping for joy,” Stephanie said.
Those jumps, she said, were followed by a lot of hugs.
Rohit Iyer Earlier this month, the two were in Washington, D.C., for the five-day 2015 National Leadership Conference — which included a rigorous exam and a speech — to vie in the national election process for two of the 11 national spots to lead the organization’s 200,000 members in 5,500 chapters across the country.
Rohit was elected vice president of finance; Zhang was named vice president of competitive events.
“We’re very excited,” said Veena Iyer, Rohit’s mother and president of the Edison Board of Education.
Stephanie and Rohit will travel to FCCLA national headquarters in Reston, Virginia, during the year to attend training and program-planning sessions. The pair will also help set policies and develop future goals for the organization as committee members of the FCCLA National Board of Directors.
Stephanie Zhang During the year, Stephanie and Rohit, along with the other national officers, will represent the organization by leading workshops and giving speeches locally and throughout the country. They will also help plan the focus and content of FCCLA’s 2016 National Leadership Conference, to be held July 3-7 in San Diego, California, according to FCCLA representatives.
Both will serve two-year terms in their respective roles.
Veena explained that the organization has gained a lot of traction in the southern and western parts of the country, but is growing in popularity in the Northeast.
“This has never happened before,” Veena said.
The organization, which brands itself as “the ultimate leadership experience,” is valuable because it allows students with all kinds of interests and skill sets to thrive, she said.
For example, Rohit is interested in finance; Stephanie wants to study at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York.
“There is something for everybody,” Stephanie said. “You definitely meet so many people who are like you but also unlike you.”
Veena Iyer said the support of the J.P. Stevens community, and consumer science teacher and FCCLA adviser Patricia Digioia Laird, helped Stephanie and Rohit prepare to take on the national roles.
She said the teachers who take on these kinds of efforts don’t get the recognition they deserve.
“This is something that they do because they want it for the kids,” she said.
The help, and the benefits gleaned from being part of the organization, don’t go unappreciated.
“It helps students develop skills for the 21st century,” Rohit said of the FCCLA. “I feel prepared to enter the job market and succeed.”
While the odds were stacked against Rohit and Stephanie for both to be named to national office, Rohit said they worked together and supported each other throughout the process.
“We did our best to have fun,” he said, explaining that he never would have met Stephanie if not for FCCLA.
Both Stephanie and Rohit said their families have also been very supportive.
Through their national roles, Rohit and Stephanie will be helping to grow FCCLA membership in New Jersey — and as such, will be spending more time together as they reach their shared goals, Rohit said.
“We’ve come so far and we’ve had so many experiences,” Stephanie said. “I am honored and so very fortunate to call [Rohit] my best friend.”
Veena said Edison students continue to excel on the national stage, citing teen Karan Menon’s win at the National Geography Bee this spring.
To learn more about FCCLA, visit www.njfccla.org.