Sayreville, NJ —
The Sayreville War Memorial High School chapter of Future Business Leaders of America hosted
the first-ever virtual Summer Business Summit between August 15 and 16, 2020. The event brought together
students and leaders from across the nation to discuss responsible leadership and the skills needed for the 21st
century. Over 200 registrants heard from various speakers, each of whom brought their own unique experiences
and shared invaluable knowledge with attendees.
The opening keynote was delivered by New Jersey State Senator Vin Gopal, the New Jersey Senate Majority
Conference Leader. Senator Gopal is one of the youngest legislators in the nation and delivered an address
focused on how young people can get involved in their communities. Senator Gopal also focused on why,
especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important for young people to bring their ideas to the table. He
reflected on his experience working in state government and asked attendees to consider public service as a
career choice. He ended by saying that programs like FBLA are “sure to be a great asset to all young people in
their future aspirations”.
The first presentation was led by Teresa Short, a Vice President at Oracle, the one of the world’s largest
computer technology companies. Utilizing her more than two decades of experience, she led a session on
“Global Business” covering the opportunities, challenges, and her personal experience working within the
international business community. When asked about her advice to help leaders managing their teams, she said
that “it is best to make sure that we don’t forget about anyone. Even if it takes certain people more time or
resources to complete a project, it’s important that we keep them on the team, because the team is more
important than any one individual”.
At the end of the first day of the summit was a panel discussion on financial literacy led by FBLA National
Treasurer Haneol Lee, a senior from Washington. Participants included New Jersey FBLA State President Aditya
Reddy, SWMHS alumnus and Goldman Sachs analyst Ronak Parikh, and Illinois FBLA State Treasurer and FBLA
National American Enterprise Project Winner Ellie Stephen. The discussion focused on how young people can be
secure in their finances and how they can prepare for college. The panel, being mostly students themselves,
advised their peers to think about the big picture and make smart financial decisions. They also encouraged
FBLA members to develop American Enterprise projects in their own community to enhance financial literacy
education and awareness of the free market system.
Adviser, Mr. Christopher Howard, remarked that “the chemistry shown by the panel was a testament to the great
things about our organization. Students from across the world can come together and be part of something
bigger than themselves, all while developing themselves, both personally and professionally”.
The second day began with a presentation titled “FBLA: Aspire” from FBLA National President Drew Lojewski, a
senior from Pennsylvania. The insightful presentation covered the FBLA national officer team’s program of work
and the numerous programs that FBLA offers its members. Drew encouraged FBLA members to aspire to achieve
their goals, no matter how ambitious, as he aims to ensure that every FBLA member is given the resources and
support they need to succeed.
Next followed a presentation on innovation from Andrew Zwicker, a member of the New Jersey General
Assembly and the Head of Communications for the Plasma Physics Laboratory at Princeton University.
Assemblyman Zwicker is also the Chairman of the General Assembly Committee on Science, Innovation, and
Technology. He centered his presentation on encouraging attendees to think differently and to not shy away
from a challenge. He also told attendees to not dwell on failures, reflecting on his failed Congressional campaign
and his resilience in contesting election the very next year. Additionally, Assemblyman Zwicker challenged
young people to tackle the issues they see in their own communities, because he feels that is what drives
progress and ensures that the world moves forward.
The final presentation came from Brian Sheehan, who serves as the Second Vice International President of Lions
Clubs, the world’s largest service club organization. Mr. Sheehan also is the Chief Executive Officer and founder
of Rural Computer Consultants, LLC, based in his hometown of Bird Island, Minnesota. His presentation focused
on how attendees can become community-minded leaders. Mr. Sheehan reminded attendees that their role as a
leader is not to dictate, but rather is to ensure that the organization or group they lead achieves its goals. Mr.
Sheehan reflected on his involvement in the Lions Club and how grateful he was to have a supportive team for
his election as International Vice President, which only could be achieved through his servant leadership. He
encouraged attendees to keep the greater good in mind as they started their own businesses, giving the
example of his company that provides paid time off for employees to do community service.
The closing keynote was delivered by U.S. Congressman Frank Pallone, who chairs the influential House
Committee on Energy and Commerce and has served sixteen terms in Congress. Congressman Pallone advised
attendees to not be discouraged by current discourse and focus on the issues that they care about the most. He
stressed the importance of honesty and consistency in leadership. Congressman Pallone inspired attendees to
influence the change they want to see in the world and take advantage of the opportunities present before
them. He ended by saying “old people like me might say that we know what we’re doing, but we have to listen to
young people because they have the ideas and energy we need to make this world a better place”.
President, Ojas Chitnis, closed out the summit by thanking all of the attendees for joining. He thanked the
SWMHS FBLA team for volunteering their time over the summer to make the event a success. The following
chapter members were recognized for their contributions to the program: Ummekulsum Alishah, Vihaan Easwar,
Aaryan Mehta, Neev Mistry, Ann Murickan, Krina Patel, Kruti Patel, and Minal Patel. To view the session
recordings from the Summer Business Summit, please visit www.swmhsfbla.org/media/sbs.