Thirty-four students from Waubonsee Community College traveled to Peoria and took part in the SkillsUSA State Leadership and Skills Conference on April 24-26. Of those competing, several placed in the three top areas across several competitions, including CNC, Automotive Refinishing, Automotive Service Technology, Collision Repair, Diesel Equipment Technology, Entrepreneurship, and Sheet Metal.
Gold-Winning Students
- Aleah Sauder, of Marengo, Automotive Refinishing Technology, studying Auto Body Repair
- Joshua Kovar, of St. Charles, Automotive Service Technology, studying Automotive Service Technology
- Julian Flores, of Oswego, Sheet Metal, studying Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning
- Entrepreneurship Team: Danny Conti, of Sugar Grove, Ryan Fotre, of Sugar Grove, Jake Guernon, of Sugar Grove, and Elijah Somlock, of Sandwich, studying Business Administration
Silver-Winning Students
- Desiree Quintero, of Aurora, Automotive Refinishing Technology, studying Auto Body Repair
- Entrepreneurship Team: Montrell Jones, of Fort Sill, Okla., Liseth Moreno, of Montgomery, Mark Price, of Batavia, and Matt Seidel, of Elburn, studying Business Administration
Waubonsee’s seven gold medal winners will advance to SkillsUSA’s National Leadership and Skills Conference in Atlanta, GA in June. The SkillsUSA Championships is the premier showcase of America’s most highly skilled career and technical education students. It features over 6,000 state champions from across the United States, competing head-to-head in 115 skilled and leadership competitions.
In recent years, Waubonsee has built a strong reputation in SkillsUSA both regionally and nationally. At the 2022 SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference, Liam Richardson, a graduate from Waubonsee and hailing from Sugar Grove, was honored as the SkillsUSA National Champion in Automotive Service Technology.
View waubonsee.edu/CTE for more information about Waubonsee’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) Programs and offerings.
Above: At the May board meeting, the Waubonsee Community College Board of Trustees and Dr. Brian Knetl, President of Waubonsee, were pictured with the faculty and staff of the Waubonsee Career and Technical Education (CTE) Program, as well as the student winners from the SkillsUSA State Leadership and Skills Conference and Mopar® Career Automotive Program (CAP) Bracket Challenge. They stood beside the 2018 Challenger SRT Demon, the Mopar® CAP prize loaner car.
