UNITEC STUDENTS WIN GOLD AT SKILLSUSA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

Area career and technical education students won some of the nation’s highest awards at the 2023 SkillsUSA Championships, held from June 20-June 23, 2023 in Atlanta, GA.

The team of Tanner Martinez (Bismarck High School) and Carter Shepard (Potosi High School) was awarded the National Champions Gold medal in ‘Robotics Urban Search and Rescue High School’. Tanner and Carter’s Gold Medal is the first in UniTec history!

Aleigha Wadlow (Kingston High School) was awarded 6th Place in ‘Mobile Robotics High School’.

More than 6,000 students competed at the national showcase of career and technical education. The SkillsUSA Championships is the largest skill competition in the world; a showcase for the best career and technical students. Contests begin locally and continue through the state and national levels.

Students were invited to the event to demonstrate their technical skills, workplace skills and personal skills in 110 hands-on occupational and leadership competitions including robotics, automotive technology, drafting, criminal justice, aviation maintenance and public speaking.

The SkillsUSA Championships event is held annually for students in middle school, high school or college/postsecondary programs as part of the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference. The national, nonprofit partnership of students, instructors and industry is a verified talent pipeline for America’s skilled workforce that is working to help solve the skills gap.

For more information: www.skillsusa.org.

UniTec Career Center’s history goes back to the 1940’s with various ‘Lead Belt’ area School Districts joining the program over the years (Bismarck in 1944 and Potosi in 1968). The campus has seen several changes, improvements and modifications over the years. UniTec Director Jeff Cauley said that approximately one-fifth of the Center’s students are coming from Washington County. Programs now offered at UniTec include Electrical, Construction, Welding, Automotive, Collision Repair, Power Sports, Machine Tool, Engineer & Design, Pathways to Teaching, Health Services, Culinary Arts, Digital Media and Graphic Design. UniTec Career Center is located at 7163 Raider Road in Bonne Terre, Mo. 63628. (573-741-3300).