Twenty-two SkillsUSA gold, 13 silver and 5 bronze student medalists traveled to Atlanta, Georgia, at the end of June to represent Downey Unified and the state of California. Competing in various areas of technical and soft skills competitions, we are very proud to announce that eight students have come home as United States SkillsUSA Champions!
With the motto, “Preparing for leadership in the world of work”, SkillsUSA is a partnership of students, teachers and industry working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce. Launched in 1967, this national competition has grown from 54 competitors in three contests to now more than 6,000 competitors in 115 hands-on occupational and leadership skill area contests.
In the Early Childhood Education Competition, Downey High School senior Guadalupe Ibarra took first place against 24 other state competitors. Enrolled in the Principles of Education course at Downey High School and conducting her on-the-job training at Alameda Elementary School, Guadalupe has found her passion and will pursue a career as a special education teacher in the Teacher TRAC program at Cerritos College + California State University.
Receiving gold in the Opening and Closing Ceremonies Competition was the Warren High School student team made up of sophomore Melissa Avila, senior Sophia Avila, senior Alexa Gamez, senior Julia Gonzalez, junior Alyssa Juarez, sophomore Maryann Kasouha and freshman Sophia Mesa. The SkillsUSA Opening and Closing Ceremonies competition is a teamwork and oral presentation event that evaluates a team’s understanding of the SkillsUSA emblem’s colors and parts. Teams are made up of seven active SkillsUSA members, including a president, vice president, parliamentarian, reporter, treasurer, secretary, and historian. The competition is a demonstration of the ceremonies, which are conducted according to a script and description in the SkillsUSA Championships Technical Standards.
“CTE [Career Technical Education] and SkillsUSA are such big parts of our culture here in Downey Unified because our main goal is to have our students graduate both college and career ready,” shared Superintendent, Dr. Garcia. “Regardless of whether our students are headed off to college or into the workforce, CTE and SkillsUSA provides students with a strong foundation of technical knowledge and employability skills to complement their academic studies and prepare them for their respective futures.”
Receiving a medal of any degree at this national competition is a triumph and the two-person team from Warren High represented our district and came home with bronze medals in the Interactive Application and Video Game Development competition. In this competition, sophomore Juliet Zenteno and senior Marcos Hope were tasked with creating an original prototype or sample of an interactive multimedia app or video game and then were judged on both their concept and their technical skills, including critical thinking, creative problem solving, teamwork, interpersonal and visual communication, artistic design, and technical programming.
Nationally, SkillsUSA serves more than 310,000 high schools, colleges, postsecondary and middle school students. This year, our students from Downey and Warren high schools competed in the following skill and leadership competitions: Commercial sUAS Drone, Aviation Maintenance Technology, CNC 3-AXIS Milling Programmer, Quiz Bowl, Additive Manufacturing, Prepared Speech, Interactive Application and Video Game Development, Esthetics, Career Pathway Showcase-Human Services, Masonry, Architectural Drafting, Opening and Closing Ceremonies, Screen Printing Technology, Community Action Project, Early Childhood Education and Employment Application Process.
Our team of student competitors has grown from only four Warren High School construction students in 2009 to currently over 700 Downey Unified students, ranging from sixth to 12th grade. Among SkillsUSA’s 15,000 school chapters, Downey Unified is one of the largest, with students qualifying for Nationals every year since 2009.
SkillsUSA’s National Leadership & Skills Conference (NLSC) is the largest gathering of America’s future skilled workforce and the ultimate recognition of excellence in career and technical education. Held in Atlanta each June, the NLSC is a week-long celebration of the skilled trades and the accomplishments of career-ready leaders from across the United States. The event brings together more than 16,000 attendees, including students, instructors, industry partners, government officials, administrators and more.
The highlight of the NLSC is the SkillsUSA Championships, where more than 6,000 state champions compete for national gold, silver and bronze medals in 115 skilled and leadership competitions. Students work against the clock and each other, proving their expertise in various industries. Nearly 2,000 judges and contest organizers from labor and management make the national event possible. Contests are run with the help of industry, trade associations and labor organizations. Test competencies are set by industry. The philosophy of SkillsUSA is to reward students for excellence, to involve industry in directly evaluating student performance and to keep training relevant to employers’ needs. Leadership contestants demonstrate skills including extemporaneous speaking and conducting meetings by parliamentary procedure. Many also received prizes such as tools of their trade and scholarships to further their careers and education. To learn more about SkillsUSA, visit www.skillsusa.org.