Northeast State students notched eight state championships and earned 17 medals during an impressive performance at the SkillsUSA Tennessee State Leadership and Skills Conference (SLSC) held April 13-16 at the Chattanooga Convention Center in Chattanooga.
Competing in 19 categories, students earned eight gold medals, six silver medals, and three bronze medals. The gold medal winners are state champions in their respective categories.
“We had an extraordinary year in SkillsUSA Post Secondary,” said Ray Acker, SkillsUSA faculty advisor and assistant dean of the Technologies Division at Northeast State. “The students worked extremely hard, and the results reflect their commitment and knowledge of their fields, as well as the commitment of the faculty and advisors who helped prepare the students.”
Northeast State’s SkillsUSA student chapter manifested in 2018 with instructor and current dean of the Technologies Division, Nichole Manz-Young. The chapter recorded impressive success in state and national competitions in recent years. Students competed for the first time in CNC (computer numerical control) programming, CNC 5-axis milling programming, and facilithon leadership in facility management categories.
GOLD medal winners
Collision Damage Appraisal—Emmalee Johnson
Additive Manufacturing—Ian Metcalf and Danielle Myers (team of two)
Computer Programming—Azriel Hendricks
CNC 5-Axis Milling Programmer—James Shirk
Facilithon—Leadership in Facility Management—Samuel Gibbs
Cybersecurity—Neal Fleck and Austin Castle (team of two)
Automotive Refinishing Technology—Canyon Kindle
Job Skill Demonstration A—Ameris Rose Bleckley
SILVER medal winners
Facilithon—Leadership in Facility Management—Dalton Whitehead
Architectural Drafting—Cody Vines
Automotive Service Technology—Candace Tolley
HVAC R—Aaron Coleman
Plumbing—Noah Edwards
CNC Programming—Colton Osborne
BRONZE medal winners
Job Interview—Ryleigh Nickles
Pin Design—Rachel Wilson
Technical Drafting—Rachel Wilson
“I am super proud to see our students rise up and succeed,” said Manz-Young. “It puts a smile on everyone’s face to see them come home so excited about their accomplishments.”
The SLSC showcases the skilled trade abilities of high school and college students across Tennessee. Quality career and technical education will be the centerpiece of the conference. More than 2,500 students, teachers, education leaders, and representatives from business and industry typically attend the conference as developers of America’s future workforce.
Wilson bagged two bronze medals—one for her design of a state-themed lapel pin and the second for a technical drafting project to build a fishing fly reel. The fly reel design involved using CAD software to design 30 separate pieces with measurements and visual features. Her project design book exceeded 50 pages of detailed designs.
“The fly reel required a lot of time,” said Wilson, an engineering design major. “The pin allowed you to create a design incorporating elements to reflect the state’s essence.”
Gibbs described the facilithon competition as a real-time emergency management exercise conducted to test the decision-making and safety knowledge of facility managers. The competition included a “twist” segment where judges threw a surprise at students, requiring problem-solving skills during the emergency scenario.
“Students are given emergency situations, and we are required to come up with a step-by-step plan to solve the facility’s issue,” said Gibbs, also an engineering design major. “It was some of the most intense moments of my education.”
Northeast State faculty and SkillsUSA advisors who prepared and accompanied the students to the competition were Ray Acker, Daniel Arnett, James Monroe, Rick Black, Brice Matthews, Jim Holbrook, Blake Terry, Roger Byington, and Gary Rowland. SkillsUSA advisors at Northeast State prepped student competitors for their categories. Nickles said the art of a successful job interview required successful preparation and confident communication for any applicant.
“You go through the job process of contacting a potential employer, filling out an application, and getting an interview,” said Nickles. “I didn’t feel like there was one question asked that I was not prepared to answer.”
Additive manufacturing, also known as 3D printing, required competitors to create three-dimensional objects by building them layer by layer from a digital model. Metcalf and Myers used 3-D CAD software to translate their design into a layer-by-layer framework for the additive manufacturing machine to follow.
“We programmed the 3D CAD software to create digital prototypes that could be 3D printed,” said Metcalf. “The product had to meet set dimensions required for the competition.”
Industry professionals created the SkillsUSA competitions to ensure students learn real-world skills employers demand from entry-level professionals. Gold medal winners earn the designation of state champion for their category. Gold medalists advance to compete at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference scheduled for June 23-27 in Atlanta.
“We never set the expectation for students to come home with a medal; we just want them to have fun,” said Manz-Young. “Taking the pressure off them, they enjoy it more, and they truly do shine.”
Founded in Tennessee and endorsed by the U.S. Department of Education, SkillsUSA is a nonprofit partnership of students, instructors, and industry that ensures America has the skilled workforce it needs to stay competitive. Tennessee has 27 public colleges of applied technology and 13 community colleges that comprise the College System of Tennessee, governed by the Tennessee Board of Regents, and the campuses are heavily involved in SkillsUSA.
Northeast State students notched eight state championships and earned 17 medals during an impressive performance at the SkillsUSA Tennessee State Leadership and Skills Conference (SLSC) held April 13-16 at the Chattanooga Convention Center in Chattanooga.
Competing in 19 categories, students earned eight gold medals, six silver medals, and three bronze medals. The gold medal winners are state champions in their respective categories.
“We had an extraordinary year in SkillsUSA Post Secondary,” said Ray Acker, SkillsUSA faculty advisor and assistant dean of the Technologies Division at Northeast State. “The students worked extremely hard, and the results reflect their commitment and knowledge of their fields, as well as the commitment of the faculty and advisors who helped prepare the students.”
Northeast State’s SkillsUSA student chapter manifested in 2018 with instructor and current dean of the Technologies Division, Nichole Manz-Young. The chapter recorded impressive success in state and national competitions in recent years. Students competed for the first time in CNC (computer numerical control) programming, CNC 5-axis milling programming, and facilithon leadership in facility management categories.
GOLD medal winners
Collision Damage Appraisal—Emmalee Johnson
Additive Manufacturing—Ian Metcalf and Danielle Myers (team of two)
Computer Programming—Azriel Hendricks
CNC 5-Axis Milling Programmer—James Shirk
Facilithon—Leadership in Facility Management—Samuel Gibbs
Cybersecurity—Neal Fleck and Austin Castle (team of two)
Automotive Refinishing Technology—Canyon Kindle
Job Skill Demonstration A—Ameris Rose Bleckley
SILVER medal winners
Facilithon—Leadership in Facility Management—Dalton Whitehead
Architectural Drafting—Cody Vines
Automotive Service Technology—Candace Tolley
HVAC R—Aaron Coleman
Plumbing—Noah Edwards
CNC Programming—Colton Osborne
BRONZE medal winners
Job Interview—Ryleigh Nickles
Pin Design—Rachel Wilson
Technical Drafting—Rachel Wilson
“I am super proud to see our students rise up and succeed,” said Manz-Young. “It puts a smile on everyone’s face to see them come home so excited about their accomplishments.”
The SLSC showcases the skilled trade abilities of high school and college students across Tennessee. Quality career and technical education will be the centerpiece of the conference. More than 2,500 students, teachers, education leaders, and representatives from business and industry typically attend the conference as developers of America’s future workforce.
Wilson bagged two bronze medals—one for her design of a state-themed lapel pin and the second for a technical drafting project to build a fishing fly reel. The fly reel design involved using CAD software to design 30 separate pieces with measurements and visual features. Her project design book exceeded 50 pages of detailed designs.
“The fly reel required a lot of time,” said Wilson, an engineering design major. “The pin allowed you to create a design incorporating elements to reflect the state’s essence.”
Gibbs described the facilithon competition as a real-time emergency management exercise conducted to test the decision-making and safety knowledge of facility managers. The competition included a “twist” segment where judges threw a surprise at students, requiring problem-solving skills during the emergency scenario.
“Students are given emergency situations, and we are required to come up with a step-by-step plan to solve the facility’s issue,” said Gibbs, also an engineering design major. “It was some of the most intense moments of my education.”
Northeast State faculty and SkillsUSA advisors who prepared and accompanied the students to the competition were Ray Acker, Daniel Arnett, James Monroe, Rick Black, Brice Matthews, Jim Holbrook, Blake Terry, Roger Byington, and Gary Rowland. SkillsUSA advisors at Northeast State prepped student competitors for their categories. Nickles said the art of a successful job interview required successful preparation and confident communication for any applicant.
“You go through the job process of contacting a potential employer, filling out an application, and getting an interview,” said Nickles. “I didn’t feel like there was one question asked that I was not prepared to answer.”
Additive manufacturing, also known as 3D printing, required competitors to create three-dimensional objects by building them layer by layer from a digital model. Metcalf and Myers used 3-D CAD software to translate their design into a layer-by-layer framework for the additive manufacturing machine to follow.
“We programmed the 3D CAD software to create digital prototypes that could be 3D printed,” said Metcalf. “The product had to meet set dimensions required for the competition.”
Industry professionals created the SkillsUSA competitions to ensure students learn real-world skills employers demand from entry-level professionals. Gold medal winners earn the designation of state champion for their category. Gold medalists advance to compete at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference scheduled for June 23-27 in Atlanta.
“We never set the expectation for students to come home with a medal; we just want them to have fun,” said Manz-Young. “Taking the pressure off them, they enjoy it more, and they truly do shine.”
Founded in Tennessee and endorsed by the U.S. Department of Education, SkillsUSA is a nonprofit partnership of students, instructors, and industry that ensures America has the skilled workforce it needs to stay competitive. Tennessee has 27 public colleges of applied technology and 13 community colleges that comprise the College System of Tennessee, governed by the Tennessee Board of Regents, and the campuses are heavily involved in SkillsUSA.
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