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Illinois Students Crowned National Champions, Win Top Prizes in Workforce Development Career Competition (Atlanta, GA) — Illinois has new national champions: young people who have turned their SkillsUSA Illinois experiences into the best preparation for success in career and technical education and workforce development fields, including heavy equipment operation, architectural drafting and cybersecurity.
A record 100 SkillsUSA Illinois students placed in the top 10 at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference, held June 24-28 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Ga. Students from 26 Illinois schools competed in a massive championship session of 115 national career competitions involving 6,647 students across a competition area of 1.79 million square feet (the size of 31 football fields, or 41 acres).
SkillsUSA Illinois’ top competitors won 26 medals at the national competition, including eight gold medals they won as national champions.
Noah Biller (sheet metal), Capital Area Career Center in Springfield Trevor Vincent (graphic imaging sublimation) and Noah Wynkoop (diesel equipment technology), Illinois Central College in East Peoria Cole Wilke (heavy equipment operator), Kishwaukee College in Malta Emily Do (architectural drafting), East Lockport Township High School Tyler Olsen (information technology services), Ronan Scott and Carter Williamson (cybersecurity), Pekin Community High School in Pekin
The complete list of SkillsUSA Illinois’ Top 10 winners can be found below: For more information about the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference, please visit https://www.nlsc.skillsusa.org/ . The website includes a livestream video of the awards ceremony and a detailed description of the week-long celebration of workforce development readiness. A media kit about the event can be found here .
All of the SkillsUSA Illinois athletes first competed at the local and regional levels before advancing to the state championships in Peoria in late April. Illinois brought more than 300 students from the state championships to Atlanta for the national competition.
Like the state championships, the national competition tests students’ skills and preparation as the culmination of a year of hands-on career and technical education (CTE). Industry partners, trade associations and unions volunteer to judge the vocational competitions, which pit students in bricklaying, engine repair, cosmetology and more against students from schools across Illinois and ultimately the nation.
SkillsUSA’s programs are supported by a state grant from the Illinois Works Pre-Apprenticeship Program. Gov. JB Pritzker approved $10 million in additional funding in the state budget that went into effect in July, and SkillsUSA Illinois plans to use the new funding to expand its successful programs to new schools and communities starting this fall.
For SkillsUSA Illinois leaders, the visit to Atlanta is an opportunity to recognize the hard work of students and celebrate the incredible progress the state of Illinois is making in investing in the career success of young people.
“We are thrilled to see the incredible accomplishments of our students, many of whom are top-ranking in their fields against thousands of their peers from across the country,” said SkillsUSA Illinois Executive Director Eric Hill. “No matter their major, our students demonstrate determination and passion under pressure, opening wide doors to success — hopefully here in Illinois. We’re grateful to Governor Pritzker, the State Legislature and our many partners in Illinois — Caterpillar, the City of Peoria, employers, unions and more — who wholeheartedly support our mission and help us provide this life-changing opportunity to more students. The SkillsUSA experience is booming and growing, and we’re excited for what’s to come.”
Illinois Students Recognized as National Champions, Top Winners in Workforce Development Career Competition
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