April 10, 2007  

MORE NEWS RELEASES

Students Compete for State's Top Honors, Chance to Represent Alabama at National Competition

(News release courtesy of the State of Alabama Department of Education, Montgomery, Alabama)

Did you know that certified automotive technicians can make $100,000 annually, and that it’s not uncommon for some aerospace engineers to earn more than $65,000 per year? Where are Alabama’s students learning the skills and gaining the valuable hands-on experience required for these and many other high-paying professions? One answer is, “in Alabama SkillsUSA.”

Over one thousand Alabama students, from schools all across the state, will travel to Birmingham this week to compete in the 2007 SkillsUSA State Championships and Leadership Conference, April 17-18.

“Action-packed is the best way to describe this event,” says Myron Laurent, Alabama’s SkillsUSA State Director. “Students participating in our conference at the Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex (BJCC), and four satellite locations, will be judged in more than 40 different competitive categories in a variety of areas ranging from electronics to auto service technology to carpentry to cosmetology. Top winners in each category will be eligible to represent Alabama at the national SkillsUSA Championship in Kansas City, Missouri, in June.”

SkillsUSA, a national non-profit organization, is devoted to preparing students for careers in technical, skilled, and service occupations. It serves more than 260,000 high school, college, and professional members. Alabama has approximately 9,000 members who enjoy this organization’s many benefits.

Highlights of Tuesday’s competition include: Precision Machining from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Wallace State Community College in Hanceville, Welding Technology from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Shelton State Community College, Automotive Service Technology 11:00 a.m.- 4:00p.m. and the General Session from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the East Ballroom of the BJCC.

Wednesday’s events at the BJCC from 8:00 a.m. to 12 noon include: Internetworking, Cosmetology Technical Awareness, Collision Repair, Industrial Motor Control, Drafting, Carpentry, and the Awards Ceremony at 4:00 p.m. Thirty-five other competitive events will be held throughout the day and include 20 different student leadership contests. Two interactive exhibits, Mechatronics and CarCam, will be on display at the BJCC. Also, Thompson Tractor is sponsoring special tours, in the afternoons, on both days of this event.

Sponsors of this year’s conference include the U.S. Air National Guard, Associated General Contractors, State Farm Insurance, the Automobile Dealers Association of Alabama, the American Welding Society, the Alabama Homebuilders Association, BE&K Construction, Alabama Power Company, Wayne J. Griffin Electrical Construction, Irwin Tools, DeWalt Tools, Burmax, and the Alabama Concrete Association. Thompson Tractor will be recognized for its many years of support of the SkillsUSA organization during a special recognition ceremony.

Alabama’s career/technical education (CTE) programs offer students opportunities to participate in seven different student organizations including SkillsUSA. Currently, one out of every two high school students in Alabama participates in CTE programs. To learn more about SkillsUSA or any of the other great educational opportunities offered by Alabama’s CTE programs, contact SkillsUSA State Director, Myron Laurent, at (334) 353-4522 or visit www.skillsalabama.org.

The following NACC students will be competing at the state SKILLSUSA Championships and Leadership Conference April 16th - 18th at the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center and Sheraton Hotel:

For more information about the Northeast chapter of SkillsUSA, contact sponsor Keith Andrews at andrewsk@nacc.edu or visit the chapter webpage.