he River Hill High School Chapter of the Future Business Leaders of America was first chartered in 1999. The first officer team was comprised of the following:

Chapter President: Puneet Gupta
Chapter Vice-President: John Pund
Chapter Treasurer: Zach Pund

There were seven active members from our chapter during that year. Among those were Scott Nathan, Ricky Hoffman, and Sajid Ansari whom have all graduated and are currently living successful lives in and around business related fields.

Teresa Waters and Lorene Canella were the first Co-Advisers of River Hill FBLA. They both dedicated time from their busy schedules to immerse themselves in the wonder that is FBLA. Since then our original Co-Adviser Lorene Canella has left the school and Mrs. Waters has taken the reigns as full advisor for our chapter. She has spent countless hours in our name, and our good fortune and success can only be attributed to her keen leadership ability.

River Hill has won the state championship trophy many times since its birth in 1999. In 2006, we retired the trophy, proof that we have won the state championship 10 times in 12 years. And at this year’s State Leadership Conference, River Hill FBLA has won the Lou T. Kaminski Award for the eighth consecutive year.

Since our birth in 1999 River Hill has had many state officers, including 3 state presidents:

2003-2004 Andy Acs
2005-2006 Sagar Gupta
2007-2008 Elizabeth Ding

State Presidents notwithstanding River Hill has had many state officers:

River Hill has also received representation at the National Level since its humble roots. Milan Thakor was National Secretary for the 2006-2007 fiscal year.

Along with a National Officer, River Hill has always had members on the Eastern Region Executive Board. These officers constantly provide information for our chapter of the goings on at the National Level.

Some Regional Members include:
Secretary: Karthik Krishnan
Membership Committee: Vir Mirchandani
Action Council Committee: Samuel Storey

During the 2007 national officer election, Elizabeth Ding ran for National Secretary. Her campaign team consisted of former Maryland State President James Ko and former chapter president Anita Ram as well as the entirety of the River Hill FBLA Chapter. Although she was not successful in her attempt, she serves as a constant reminder of the true power behind the combination of leadership and ambition.

River Hill FBLA also had representation in elections at the 2009 National Leadership Conference as Scott Salopek served as the Campaign Manager to National President Candidate and former State President Aaron Moore. All 14 of River Hill’s NLC attendees served on Aaron’s campaign team. The team was not successful, but they each learned valuable lessons in leadership, communication, teamwork, and campaigning.

During the 2010 National Leadership Conference, River Hil once again empowered a student to become a National Officer. Jack Fitzpatrick, Campaign Manager, and members from across the state of Maryland rallied behind Karthik Krishnan, who now serves as the 2010-2011 FBLA National Treasurer. Having Milan and Karthik at that level has allowed our chapter to have a competitive edge, and they have been a constant staple of the achievement that our chapter has received.