NEWS RELEASES 2012-13

31 NC STUDENTS HONORED AT NATIONAL SKILLSUSA CHAMPIONSHIPS

Thirty-one North Carolina high school students recently won awards at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference. Industry leaders representing over 1,100 businesses, corporations, trade associations and unions recognized the students for their demonstrated excellence in 94 hands-on occupational and leadership contests, such as robotics, criminal justice, aviation maintenance and public speaking. All contests are designed, run and judged by industry using industry standards.

"We are so proud of our students taking Career and Technical Education courses who continue to excel on national certification exams and in skills competitions," said State Superintendent June Atkinson. "These achievements are a testament to our teachers' dedication, our students' outstanding talents and they offer more proof that we are building a diverse workforce that will bring all types of new businesses and jobs to North Carolina."

Top student winners received gold, silver and bronze medallions. Many also received prizes such as tools of their trade and/or scholarships to further their careers and education. The SkillsUSA Championships is for high school and college-level students who are members of SkillsUSA.

In addition, high scorers in the contests received Skill Point Certificates. The Skill Point Certificate was awarded in 86 occupational and leadership areas to students who achieved a high score defined by industry. The SkillsUSA Championships have been a premier event since 1967. The Skill Point Certificates were introduced in 2009 as a component of the SkillsUSA Work Force Ready System.

The following North Carolina high school students received both medallions and Skill Point Certificates:

• Cameron Bare from Starmount High (Yadkin County Schools) was awarded the high school silver medal in Marine Service Technology.
  
  
• Hunter Pipes from Hibriten High (Lenoir County Schools) was awarded the high school bronze medal in Graphic Communications.
  
  
• Kednra Lisec from John T. Hoggard High (New Hanover County Schools) was awarded the college/postsecondary gold medal in Prepared Speech.

The following students were Skill Point Certificate recipients:

• Taylor S. Eargle from Middle Creek High (Wake County Public School System) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in T-Shirt Design.
  
  
• Alec Mcdivitt and Tyler Campbell from Middle Creek High (Wake County Public School System) were awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Television (Video) Production.
  
  
• Sierra Mueller from Watauga High (Watauga County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Cosmetology.
  
  
• Jacob Whitley from Concord High (Cabarrus County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Firefighting.
  
  
• Bailey Roark from Jack Britt High (Cumberland County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Principles of Technology.
  
  
• Kasey L. Combs and Elizabeth Krumpelman from Pine Forest High (Cumberland County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in 3-D Visualization and Animation.
  
  
• Justin Norris from South Johnston High (Johnston County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Firefighting.
  
  
• Kaitlyn Barbour, Emily Raynor, Brantley Tart, Ian Stancil, Morgan Barnes and Shannon Tart from South Johnston High (Johnston County Schools) were awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Chapter Business Procedure.
  
  
• Daniel Gwaltney from Weaver Academy (Guilford County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Collision Repair Technology.
  
  
• Jeremy Chastain from North Henderson High (Henderson County Public Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Technical Drafting.
  
  
• Tyler Spierdowis from Cedar Ridge High (Orange County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Cabinetmaking.
  
  
• Matthew J. Ramirez from Central Academy of Technology & Arts (Union County Public Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Automotive Service Technology.
  
  
• Kody Stapleton, Katherine Wright and Nathan Parnell from West Montgomery High (Montgomery County Schools) were awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Career Pathways - Industrial & Engineering Technology.
  
  
• Blake Young from Croatan High (Carteret County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in First Aid-CPR.
  
  
• Justin Biddix from F.T. Foard High (Catawba County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Masonry.
  
  
• Patrick D. Smith, Andrew R. Thorne and Alex W. Hooks from Charles B. Aycock High (Wayne County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Promotional Bulletin Board.
  
  
• Alfonso Williams from Richlands High (Onslow County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Job Interview.
  
  
• April Martin from Richmond Senior High (Richmond County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Screen Printing Technology.
  
  
• Adam Dodson from Bartlett Yancey High (Caswell County Schools) was awarded a Skill Point Certificate in Automotive Refinishing Technology.

"Over 5,900 students from every state in the nation came to compete in the SkillsUSA Championships this week," said SkillsUSA Executive Director Tim Lawrence. "This is the SkillsUSA partnership at its best. Students, instructors and industries are working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce and every student excels. These students prove that career and technical education expands opportunities."

According to the U.S. Department of Education, students who take three or more Career and Technical Education (CTE) courses in high school are more likely to attend college and stay there to graduate. In fact, 79 percent of CTE concentrators enrolled in postsecondary education within two years of high school graduation. And, students in CTE programs have a higher-than-average high school graduation rate. The national average high school graduation rate for students concentrating in CTE courses is 90 percent compared to an average national freshman graduation rate of 74.9 percent.

Industry support of the SkillsUSA Championships is valued at over $35 million in donated time, equipment, cash and material. All contests are run and judged by industry experts using industry standards for employment. Contests assess hands-on, employability and academic skills. Over 1,700 industry judges and technical committee members participated this year.

The SkillsUSA Work Force Ready System was developed as an extension of the SkillsUSA mission and supported by a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The System recognizes students for excellence in occupational training; it assesses and documents the entry-level technical proficiency and cumulative experiences of candidates. For more information about the SkillsUSA Work Force Ready System, visit www.workforcereadysystem.com.