More than 6,500 career and technical education students competed during the SkillsUSA Championships at the 54th annual National Leadership and Skills Conference (NLSC) in Louisville, Kentucky, June 27-28.
The SkillsUSA Championships is the nation’s largest workforce development event for middle-school, high-school and college/postsecondary students enrolled in public career and technical education programs.
During the two-day SkillsUSA Championships, high school and college students worked against the clock and each other in hands-on challenges in 102 different trade, technical and leadership fields.
Medalists in the automotive, collision, diesel and motorcycle categories include:
Automotive Service Technology
Competitors demonstrated their ability to perform jobs and skills based on the task list outlined by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) and the ASE Education Foundation (formerly known as the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation or NATEF). Workstations consisted of on-vehicle simulations, bench and component testing, and a written test. Competitors were judged on technical competency, accuracy, quality, safety and ability to follow directions.
High School
Gold – John Myers, Dennis Technical Education Center, Gold Boise, Idaho
Silver – Ian Gregor, Doherty High School, Colorado Springs, Colorado
Bronze – Isaac Boyce, Hampshire High School Career Training Center, Romney, West Virginia
College
Gold – Sam Peterson, Saint Cloud Technical and Community College, Saint Cloud, Minnesota
Silver – Andrew Adams, Pittsburg State University, Pittsburg, Kansas
Bronze – Michael Yates, Jefferson Community & Technical College, Louisville, Kentucky
Automotive Refinishing Technology
Competitors demonstrated the ability to perform jobs based on the task list outlined by the National Institute for Automotive Excellence (ASE) and the ASE Education Foundation (formerly known as the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation or NATEF). The competition included a series of workstations to assess skills in areas like surface preparation, spray gun operation, paint mixing, safety precaution implementation and more. The competitors also completed an interview, a written estimate and an ASE written exam.
High School
Gold – Elmer Hernandez, Pickens Technical College, Gold Aurora, Colorado
Silver – Alec Hoover, Vanguard-Sentinel CTC-Sentinel Campus, Tiffin, Ohio
Bronze – Kyle Coombs, Spanish Fork High School, Spanish Fork, Utah
College
Gold – Scotty George, Utah Valley University, Gold Orem, Utah
Silver – Ashley Carravallah, Washtenaw Community College, Ann Arbor, Michigan
Bronze – Anthony Black, Alfred State College-School of Applied Technology, Wellsville, New York
Collision Repair Technology
Competitors demonstrated their ability to perform jobs based on the task list outlined by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) and the ASE Education Foundation (formerly known as the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation or NATEF). The competition included a series of workstations to assess skills. There was also a written test, and competitors also participate in an interview.
High School
Gold – Caleb Eyler, Warren County Career Center, Warren, Pennsylvania
Silver – Noah Borer, Vanguard-Sentinel CTC-Sentinel Campus, Tiffin, Ohio
Bronze – Abagayle Boden, High School Aims Community College-Windsor, Greeley, Colorado
College
Gold – Johnathan Wolfe, Wiregrass Georgia Tech College, Gold Valdosta, Georgia
Silver – Kyle Ray, Metropolitan Community College, Omaha, Nebraska
Bronze – Juan Alcala, Texas State Tech College-Waco, Waco, Texas
NEW! Collision Damage Appraisal (Demo)
In this new contest in the demo stage, competitors demonstrated their ability to perform jobs and skills based on the task list outlined by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) and the ASE Education Foundation (formerly known as the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation or NATEF). The competition included a series of workstations to assess skills. There was a written test, and competitors also participated in an interview.
High School
Gold – Lynzi Binder, Carbon Career & Technical Institute, Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania
Silver – Jared Arfsten, Career Start, Silver Colorado Springs, Colorado
Bronze – Eric Austin, Career Technical Education Center, Bronze Salem, Oregon
College
Gold – Joel Taft, Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, Gold Green Bay, Wisconsin
Silver – Michael Kunkle, Aims Community College-Windsor, Silver Greeley, Colorado
Bronze – Cayden Bailey, Utah Valley University, Bronze Orem, Utah
Diesel Equipment Technology
Competitors cycled through 14 stations while testing and troubleshooting engines and electrical, electronics and power train systems (including chassis, transmissions and carriers). Competitors also demonstrated skills in hydraulic systems, vehicle inspections, fundamental- failure analysis, brake and air conditioning systems and general shop skills. The competition also included a mock job interview and written test.
High School
Gold – Nathan Graveling, Careerline Tech Center, Gold Holland, Michigan
Silver – Mason McKechnie, High School Carroll County Career & Tech Center, Westminster, Maryland
Bronze – Bryton Frost, Haleyville Center of Technology, Haleyville, Alabama
College
Gold – Cooper Blakeney, Illinois Central College, East Peoria, Illinois
Silver – Matthew Smith, Salt Lake Community College, Salt Lake City, Urah
Bronze – William Cebelak, Ferris State University, Big Rapids, Michigan
Motorcycle Service Technology
Competitors performed tasks representative of those encountered in a dealership’s service department. Technical skills included: performing scheduled maintenance tasks; using service, electrical diagnostic and parts manuals; conducting electrical diagnostics; executing precision measurement; administering brake and chassis/suspension service; inspecting and repairing fuel delivery, transmission, drive and power train systems. Judges looked for clean and organized work habits, correct use of reference materials, the ability to follow directions and good technical skills.
High School
Gold – Hayden Sedlak, Plattsmouth High School, Plattsmouth, Nebraska
Silver – Dylan Miller, Upper Bucks County AVTS, Perkasie, Pennsylvania
Bronze – Benjamin Jaenke, Medina County Career Center, Medina, OH
College
Gold – Kevin Neill, Bates Technical College, Tacoma, Washington
Silver – Andrew Janes, WITC- New Richmond, New Richmond, Wisconsin
Bronze – Haley Hughes, State Technical College of Missouri, Bronze Linn, Missouri
For more information about SkillsUSA, visit skillsusa.org.
