Students

Andrew Phillips

Andrew Phillips is a senior at Spain Park and has been a member of DECA and the Business and Entrepreneurship Academy since his freshman year. He has served as his grade level vice president for DECA for three years and was elected as the DECA president this year. He is the Spain Park National Business Honor Society Vice-President, National Honor Society Vice-President, and a SPHS Ambassador.

He excels in both academic and athletics. He is three time academic letterman and National Merit Scholar Finalist. In his free time, Andrew enjoys playing club soccer, playing the piano, doing community service, serving at his local church, and working at Craft Burger. Andrew plans to attend a university and then go to medical school.

Hannah Hickman

Hannah Hickman has served on the DECA State Officer Team for three consecutive years as the Vice President, District 2 Vice President, and the State President. While in high school she enjoyed participating in leadership conferences and competing at the state and national level. She won first place her freshman year in Business Services Operation Research, sophomore year 1st place in Career Development Project, and second place her junior year in Business Services Operations Research, and 1st place senior year in Finance Operations Research. She was Spain Park DECA's grade level Vice-President for DECA for three years and served as the State Liaison her senior year. She served as a SPHS Ambassador and served as the SPHS Secretary of the Student Government Association. She is currently at Auburn University majoring in Finance at Auburn University.

Ben Deas

Spain Park Highlights

National Merit Finalist
Academic and athletic letterman, captain of swim and dive team
Honor graduate
President of National Honor Society
Treasurer of National Business Honor Society
1st place in DECA state competition twice (won the Franchise Business Plan event junior year with Dare Adams, but I can’t remember what the event was called that me and Taylor Moore won senior year)
2nd place in JA Be Entrepreneurial Business Plan Challenge
Member of SP Ambassadors

Auburn Info/Highlights

Major in Mechanical Engineering and minor in Supply Chain Management (in the college of business)
Scholarship student, Dean’s List student
Completed internship with Trane Technologies as a technical sales engineer intern in commercial HVAC sales.
Completed internship with AMERICAN Cast Iron Pipe Company as a manufacturing engineer intern in the Ductile Iron Pipe division.
Member of Cupola Engineering Ambassadors (similar to SP ambassadors but for the College of Engineering)
President of Pi Tau Sigma Mechanical Engineering Honor Society
Pumphrey Outstanding Pre-Engineering Student Award 2023, Member of Pi Gamma Tau Freshman Engineering Honorary

"When thinking about how DECA/Spain Park’s Business Academy prepared me for my experiences in college, two main things come to mind. First, the curriculum gave me a strong foundation that I have carried into my classes in Auburn. Although Spain Park did not have supply chain management classes, it still prepared me for my minor coursework because I was easily able to recognize and apply concepts I learned in my supply chain classes to a more well-rounded view of business that includes the more well known areas (management, finance, accounting, marketing, entrepreneurship, etc. that I was introduced to at SP). Additionally, I am planning on using this foundation in my career as an engineer; many engineers eventually move into management positions where they do more business work than engineering on a day-to-day basis, and some even go back to school to get their MBA.

Secondly, the career prep instruction that is given in the Business Academy has been a tremendous aid to me in securing internship opportunities. The ability to have a strong resume and elevator pitch coming out of high school, as well as the ability to sell myself to an employer in a professional way, is the main reason why I stood out among other applicants for my internships, and I learned it all in high school with the Business Academy. I once went to a resume workshop being held for engineering students before a career fair, and the example resume they gave us looked almost exactly the same as the one Mrs. Bruce had used to teach us in high school. Building these professional skills in high school gave me confidence to talk to future employers at a young age, which was especially helpful for looking into engineering positions. Soft skills in these positions are harder to come by than you would think, and employers will often favor soft skills over raw skills/intellect in candidates."

Mackenzie Moore

Mackenzie graduated from Spain Park High school in 2023. She served as the State of Alabama DECA District 2 Vice-President for two consecutive years leaving the most DECA Legacy Points of anyone at Spain Park. While Mackenzie was at SPHS, she completed both the marketing and finance pathways in the business academy. She placed at the Alabama State Career Development Conference in the Community Giving Project in 2020, Community Giving Project in 2021, and Finance Operations Research in 2023. She held participated in and held leadership positions in the following: Alabama State Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) District 2 Vice-President, SPHS Student Government Association Representative (SGA), Junior Class Office Liaison (JCO Liaison), Sophomore Vice President of DECA, Hoover Belle, Key Club, President of Alabama Latin Club, State Vice President of District 2 of DECA, Model UN, Diamond Doll, Alabama Student Advisory Board, National Business Honor Society Vice-President.

She is attending Auburn University where she plans to major in engineering with a minor in business.

Tyler Noles

“My time in the SPHS Finance Academy and DECA provided me with a solid foundation in financial principles and a deep understanding of business relationships. The rigorous curriculum and hands-on experiences equipped me with the skills needed to be successful in the financial world. Thanks to this program, I was able graduate magna cum laude at Auburn University with a degree in Accountancy. After completing my degree, I confidently pursued a career as an investment advisor, where I continue to apply the knowledge gained during those formative years. I recently passed the Series 7 exam to help me further my career in finance. SPHS Finance Academy played a pivotal role in shaping my success and interest in the financial industry.”

-Tyler Noles, Class of 2019