Caroline Santo’s leadership journey began when she was a high school freshman and attended the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) state conference in Greensboro for the first time.

The state officers were wearing formal attire — as they do each year — as they took the stage to hand out awards.

“I was sitting in the audience, and I was looking up and they were in green that year,” Santo recalled. “I turned to my adviser and said, ‘That’s going to be me one year.’”

The following year, she signed up to run for office. The application process was “super quick and a little bit deceiving.” Santo completed her interviews at regionals and then delivered her speech at the state conference — a process that proved to be “nerve-wracking” and left her questioning whether she really wanted to

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