SkillsUSA is one of several Career and Technical Education Student Organizations for students at Wayne State College.
SkillsUSA provides leadership opportunities and competition events for its members. Several students finished high in the nation in post-secondary cabinet making. Chris Todd of Holstein, Iowa finished second in the nation post-secondary cabinetmaking and state champion. His runner up finish is also the highest after two third places in previous years, one in cabinetmaking and the other in carpentry. Derek Summers of Norfolk finished third in the nation in post-secondary cabinetmaking.
“After almost 40 years of association with SkillsUSA, the last several years with both state and national contests and the Wayne State College student success have been very rewarding as their advisor,’’ said Greg Vander Weil, Advisor.
“These students are an outstanding group of young adults, who take charge, run the organization and simply ask for my advice and support as needed,’’ Vander Weil said. “They have the leadership skills, content knowledge and skills to be very successful after graduation from Wayne State College. We’re looking at our best year this spring in Grand Island and then off to Nationals in Atlanta, Ga. next summer.”
WSC SkillsUSA member Todd went to the Commissioner’s Recognition for Student Excellence in Nebraska Career and Technical Education in Lincoln. Todd met recently with Commissioner of Education Matthew L. Blomstedt and Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts.
“This will be my second year being a member of SkillsUSA since my high school did not offer it. SkillsUSA has helped me to develop better people skills. This has been through the countless emails and phone calls I have had to make just to compete last year. The Mid-American conference also allowed me to branch out and make some connections that will benefit me later in life. I would recommend SkillsUSA because it is a great environment as well as it being a good responsibility builder in a college which is generally a time of too much freedom for young adults. My favorite part of SkillsUSA has been the competition. I competed in cabinetmaking and managed to come out with a second-place finish. This result netted me a couple hundred dollars’ worth of tools as well as a meeting with the Nebraska Governor. The main projects completed this year were the cornhole board builds and the Meats and Sweets fundraiser. As an STS educator I believe that if schools are wanting to expand in the area of ITE my experience in SkillsUSA might bring about a change in the school environment,’’ Todd said.
Zach Covington of Papillion serves as secretary of SkillsUSA at Wayne State College. Covington has been in SkillsUSA for four years since his sophomore year in high school.
“SkillsUSA has helped me develop as a person by helping with my time management skills and leadership skills as I started to take leadership positions," Covington said. "I would recommend joining skills for anyone interested in competing in job skills they are good at and if they want to better themselves all around. For me personally, my favorite part of Skills has been the many opportunities presented to me.’’
Covington said his many opportunities have helped him grow out of his comfort zone.
“Projects I have done with SkillsUSA have included competing in the online State Conference in Additive Manufacturing,’’ Covington said. “This year as officers we put together the Meats and Sweets fundraiser which was a good success. Also, the Mid-America conference was good for the officer team as it helped us grow our leadership skills. I also will be a skilled and technical sciences (STS) educator and being a part of SkillsUSA will help with that.’’
SkillsUSA is a career and technical student organization (CTSO). CTSOs are an extension of classroom instruction — applying classroom learning to real-world experiences, they are not clubs. CTSOs are connected to middle school, high school, and post-secondary instructional programs and are integral to the classroom.
Benefits of CTSOs for students:
•Opportunities for all students with all ability levels
•Apply academic and technical learning and skills to real life situations
•Awards, competitions and scholarships
•Development of the whole person, from technical skills to leadership skills
•Physical and financial well-being; making decisions in real life application
•Career awareness
•Exposure to local, state, national and global opportunities, develop cultural competence
•Discovery and utilization of individual strengths and talents
•Learn how to be responsible, understand organization functions and how to carry those out to completion
For more information, please call Greg Vander Weil at 402-375-7283.
Wayne State College, a leading, public four-year college in northeast Nebraska, is a proud member of the Nebraska State College System.
