SkillsUSA winners heading to state from Region 1
Several students from the Polk School District are heading to the state level of competition in 2020 following wins in the SkillsUSA Region 1 event in recent days.
Winners include Automove Refinishing Technology competitor Hunter Forsyth of Cedartown High School, who took a lone first place in the event.
Rockmart’s Ansley Wynn also took a first place win in CPR and First Aid, as well as classmate Oliver Nolasco in Plumbing.
“Students from both campuses of Polk County College and Career Academy
represented us well at the region competition and will be moving on the the state competition in March,” PCCCA CEO and Assistant Superintendent Katie Thomas said. “The standard of excellence when it comes to technical skill has always been a top priority in Polk County. We could not be more proud of our students and instructors that work extremely hard daily to showcase their talents.”
The district also had several second and third place winners this year. Those included Cedartown finishers in Collision Repair Technology second place winner Rodney Williams, Job
Demonstration Madison Whatley and Esthetics second place winner Sandra Daniell. Third place Bulldogs included Ethan Lester in CPR and First Aid, Seth Wright in Prepared Speech and Rossy Cruz in Cosmetology.
The wins mark the latest students to head onward to chances at a state title in SkillsUSA competition. The top two from each category head onward to Atlanta March 12 through March 14, then have a chance at the national level in the summer months of 2020.
The competitions allow for students to showcase talents they are learning in the classroom and on the campus of the Polk County College and Career Academy they’ll soon have a chance to use in the real world as workers.
“Our students are the future employees and citizens of this commu
nity. We all need to recognize their efforts and congratulate them on a job well done,” Thomas said. “Creating a talented pipeline highskill, high-character individuals is our goal and competitions such as this show the fruits of our labor.”
The annual competition starts on the regional level and moves upward until students reach the national level, this past year held in Indianapolis, Indiana.
“Think of a science fair for technical students mixed with leadership skills, that is a SkillsUSA competition,” Melissa McLain, GNTC graduation specialist and SkillsUSA advisor said. “These students are learning what they need to do before they get into the workforce.”
According to McLain, there were over 400 students and observers on the WCC on Friday getting acquainted with the college as well as future employment opportunities. While the skills learned through competing may benefit future employers, the main purpose of the events was to give students a taste of what is to come.
“It gives them an eye opening experience for what they can do after high school,” McLain said.
While soft skill competitions like speech and interviewing happened inside, the masonry and carpentry competitions were taking place under the awnings of the 300 building. According to Donny Holmes, GNTC program director and instructor of Construction Management, students were given two and a half hours to complete their challenge and were scored on mathematical accuracy as well as other factors.
Competitors in the carpentry contest were given a small platform on which they had to build a wall frame with a window and stairs with a railing.
The students had to follow the blueprints provided to them by the judges while using lumber and hardware donated by Cedartown’s Duffy Construction Company. Chesley Chambers, Region 1 SkillsUSA co-chair, said the businesses and industries in the northwest Georgia region are very supportive of the competition since it helps students prepare to enter into the workforce.
“SkillsUSA shows the industry what these students can do,” he said. “As a result, they want to hire them.”
While there were plenty of industrial events involving physical labor such as plumbing and electrical construction wiring, the contest also featured soft skill competitions. Deasia Harris, a North Whitfield High School student, interviewed for a fictional position with a panel of judges composed of GNTC staff who gave her feedback on the meeting.
Harris told Lisa Pearson, Student Success assistant, Georgina Valderrama, secretary for Academic Affairs, and Michelle Sevy, Associate Degree Nursing instructor, about her aspirations to join the army and have the military pay for her medical school.