Dozens of Illinois students are celebrating national success this summer, thanks to their experience for workforce development through SkillsUSA Illinois.
Illinois set a record with 100 students finishing in the top 10 at the recent SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference held in late June in Atlanta, Georgia.
Students from 26 Illinois junior high school, high school and college chapters of SkillsUSA Illinois placed highly against more than 6,000 students from across the nation in a competition area as large as 31 football fields, as part of an Illinois delegation that topped 300 students.
Eight students earned gold medal top honors as national champions, with another eight finishing second and 10 finishing third.
All the competing students had spent the year preparing for the career competitions through SkillsUSA’s hands-on training in their own classrooms, then local and regional competitions and finally advancing to the state championships in late April in Peoria. The top finishers there advanced to the national event.
The National Championships event wraps up a successful year for SkillsUSA Illinois with more encouraging news ahead. The new state budget includes millions of dollars in new funding to support career and technical
education (CTE) programs like SkillsUSA, which will allow them to expand their offerings into more schools in
new communities.
Students in SkillsUSA chapters learn a variety of skills to prepare them for career success in fields that don’t
necessarily require a four-year college degree but need skilled training beyond high school in everything from
manufacturing and health care to electronics, cosmetology and much more.
“We are ecstatic to see the tremendous results of our students, and to have so many perform at the top of their fields against thousands of their peers from across the United States,” SkillsUSA Illinois Executive Director EricHill said. “Regardless of their field of study, our students have shown a determination and passion to perform under pressure that will open many doors for them to succeed, hopefully right here in Illinois. We thank Gov. Pritzker, the Legislature and our many partners in Illinois – from Caterpillar and the City of Peoria to our employers and labor organizations – who wholeheartedly support our mission and help us reach more students to provide more life-changing opportunities. The SkillsUSA experience is thriving and growing, and we are excited for what is ahead.”
A list of SkillsUSA Illinois top-10 finishers at the national event is included below.
TOP-10 FINISHERS BY SCHOOL
Central Illinois
Bloomington Area Career Center – Bloomington, IL
o Brynn Hoder (Pin Design), 2 nd Place
o Jayla Westhoff (Cosmetology), 4 th Place
Clinton Junior High School – Clinton, IL
o Christopher Morge (Robotics: Urban Search and Rescue), 6 th Place
o Nate Tull (Robotics: Urban Search and Rescue), 6 th Place
Illinois Central College – East Peoria, IL
o Noah Wynkoop (Diesel Equipment Technology), 1 st Place
o Trevor Vincent (Graphic Imaging Sublimation), 1 st Place
Morton High School – Morton, IL
o Emma Belsly (Additive Manufacturing), 3 rd Place
o Ethan Cross (Additive Manufacturing), 3 rd Place
Heartland Community College – Normal, IL
o Tallon Short (T-Shirt Design), 6 th Place
o Andy Irving (Telecommunication Cabling), 8 th Place
Pekin Community High School – Pekin, IL
o Carter Williamson (Cyber Security), 1 st Place
o Ronan Scott (Cyber Security), 1 st Place
o Tyler Olsen (Information Technology Services), 1 st Place
o Kent Olson (Mobile Electronics Installation), 4 th Place
o Zane Scott (Telecommunication Cabling), 5 th Place
o Alexander Holmes (Television Video Production), 6 th Place
o Logan Booth (Television Video Production), 6 th Place
Peoria Public Schools – Peoria, IL
o RC Thomas (Community Action Project), 8 th Place
o Ryan Medley (Community Action Project), 8 th Place
Carver Community Center – Peoria, IL
o Rayniah Anderson (Job Skill Demonstration OPEN), 6 th Place
Capital Area Career Center – Springfield, IL
o Noah Biller (Sheet Metal), 1 st Place
o MacKenzie Miller (T-Shirt Design), 6 th Place
Chicago
Thomas Kelly College Prep – Chicago, IL
o Adrian Uribe (Customer Service), 7 th Place
o Armando Perez (Opening and Closing Ceremonies), 7 th Place
o Brendan Tang (Opening and Closing Ceremonies), 7 th Place
o David Hernandez (Opening and Closing Ceremonies), 7 th Place
o Dulce Parades (Opening and Closing Ceremonies), 7 th Place
o Esmeralda Pineda (Opening and Closing Ceremonies), 7 th Place
o Ethan Li (Opening and Closing Ceremonies), 7 th Place
o Marleny Marquez (Opening and Closing Ceremonies), 7 th Place
DuPage County (suburban Chicago)
Technology Center of DuPage – Addison, IL
o Marielle Vega (Nail Care), 5 th Place
o Jared Gonzalez (Barbering), 9 th Place
York Community High School – Elmhurst, IL
o Panos Soupos (Technical Drafting), 4 th Place
Metro East
Southwestern Illinois College – Belleville, IL
o Robert Wingerter (CNC 3-Axis Milling Programmer), 4 th Place
o Jared Simmons (CNC 2-Axis Turning Programmer), 5 th Place
o Zachary Painter (CNC Programmer), 6 th Place
o Anna Nichols (Nurse Assisting), 7 th Place
o Cody Croxford (Automated Manufacturing Technology), 8 th Place
o Jacob Curvey (Automated Manufacturing Technology) 8 th Place
o Lucas Gregson (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration), 8 th Place
o Mattison Lienemann (Automated Manufacturing Technology), 8 th Place
North Suburbs of Chicagoland
College of Lake County – Grayslake, IL
o Stephany Amador (Criminal Justice), 2 nd Place
o Sam Soulari (Culinary Arts), 4 th Place
o Tessia Milkie (Early Childhood Education), 6 th Place
o Lindsey Clements (Crime Scene Investigation), 7 th Place
o Yahaira Garcia (Crime Scene Investigation), 7 th Place
o Zulma Mendoza (Crime Scene Investigation), 7 th Place
Lake County Tech Campus – Grayslake, IL
o Allison Wenzel (Career Pathways Showcase: Health Services), 3 rd Place
o Ashley Bridges (Career Pathways Showcase: Health Services), 3 rd Place
o Nicholas Lunsford (Career Pathways Showcase: Health Services), 3 rd Place
o Giovanni Tate (Early Childhood Education), 6 th Place
o Keaton Johnson (Emergency Medical Technician), 6 th Place
o Max Glusic (Emergency Medical Technician), 6 th Place
o Janeth Castanon (Medical Assisting), 7 th Place
Northern Illinois
Kishwaukee Education Consortium – Malta, IL
o Abel Huerta (Job Skill Demonstration A), 2 nd Place
o Addison McGlaughlin (Health Occupations Professional Portfolio), 4 th Place
o Chris Thorne (Diesel Equipment Technology), 7 th Place
Kishwaukee College – Malta, IL
o Cole Willke (Heavy Equipment Operator), 1 st Place
o Lily Goode (Power Equipment Technology), 8 th Place
Carl Sandburg College – Galesburg, IL
o Gavin Gerard (Masonry), 3 rd Place
o Brian Kipchemis (Medical Math), 6 th Place
o Faith Kiprop (Technical Computer Applications), 7 th Place
Kankakee Area Career Center – Bourbonnais, IL
South Suburbs of Chicago
Lockport Township High School East – Lockport, IL
o Emily Do (Architectural Drafting), 1 st Place
o Krista Wojcikiewicz (Engineering Technology Design), 5 th Place
o Lia Merkel (Engineering Technology Design), 5 th Place
o Stephen Reuter (Engineering Technology Design), 5 th Place
o Abel Torres (TeamWorks), 8 th Place
o Bartosz Leja (TeamWorks), 8 th Place
o Patrick Jerabek (TeamWorks), 8 th Place
o Ryan Ebert (TeamWorks), 8 th Place
o Andrew Finley (3-D Visualization and Animation), 10 th Place
o Jessica Ing (3-D Visualization and Animation), 10 th Place
Peotone High School – Peotone, IL
o Augustyn Price (Robotics: Urban Search and Rescue), 8 th Place
o Xavier Villalobos (Robotics: Urban Search and Rescue), 8 th Place
Peotone Junior High School – Peotone, IL
o Kaleb Schirmer (Team Engineering Challenge), 2 nd Place
o Kohen Schirmer (Team Engineering Challenge), 2 nd Place
o Quinn McCleverty (Team Engineering Challenge), 2 nd Place
o Jaida DeMoss (Prepared Speech), 6 th Place
West Suburbs of Chicago
Metea Valley High School – Aurora, IL
o Ajay Kavuri (Mobile Robotics Technology), 3 rd Place
o SaiManidhar Mutyala (Mobile Robotics Technology), 3 rd Place
o Nitin Gopala (Medical Math), 3 rd Place
o Shunya Patel (Prepared Speech), 5 th Place
o Pranav Tummala (Dental Assisting), 10 th Place
West Aurora High School – Aurora, IL
o Diana Garcia (Practical Nursing), 4 th Place
o Brian Wolfe (Welding Fabrication), 6 th Place
o Max Balsitis (Welding Fabrication), 6 th Place
o Daniel Vasquez-Garcia (Automated Manufacturing Technology), 6 th Place
o Jayden Crete (CNC Programmer), 7 th Place
o Nicholas Morales (Automated Manufacturing Technology), 7 th Place
o Tyler Pozzi (Automated Manufacturing Technology), 7 th Place
Oswego High School – Oswego, IL
o Phoenix Goldstein (Restaurant Service), 3 rd Place
Indian Valley Vocational Center – Sandwich, IL
o Charis Davidson (Medical Terminology), 2 nd Place
o Brandon Iskowitz (Automotive Maintenance and Light Repair), 6 th Place
Waubonsee Community College – Sugar Grove, IL
o Aleah Sauder (Automotive Refinishing Technology), 2 nd Place
o Daniel Conti (Entrepreneurship), 6 th Place
o Jake Guernon (Entrepreneurship), 6 th Place
o Mark Price (Entrepreneurship), 6 th Place
o Ryan Fotre (Entrepreneurship), 6 th Place
o Julian Flores (Sheet Metal), 7 th Place
o Joshua Kovar (Automotive Service Technology), 8 th Place
For more on the SkillsUSA program, visit https://www.skillsusaillinois.org/.
