Participation in FBLA-PBL can have a direct impact on the direction and success of a young person's career. Millions of students have learned through active membership in FBLA-PBL about the world of business and what is expected of them in the workplace. There are over 270,000 active members in over 12,000 chartered chapters in 50 states, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, U.S. Territories, and Department of Defense Dependent Schools worldwide. Membership is open to students in Grades 7-12. Structure FBLA-PBL is headquartered in Reston, Virginia, and is organized on the local, state, and national levels.
Local chapters operate with the guidance of educators as advisers.
State chapters are guided by executive directors, state advisers, and Department of Education staff members who report to the national organization. Endorsements FBLA is endorsed by the American Management Association, the American Vocational Association, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, the National Business Education Association, the National Management Association, the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and the U.S. Department of Education. History During the 1937-38 school year, Hamden L. Forkner of Teachers College, Columbia University, New York City, proposed to various business leaders attending meetings of their respective state and regional associations that a plan of organization be setup for the thousands of business clubs in high schools and colleges throughout the country.