Severna Park High School Students Place In SkillsUSA Competition

This summer, Severna Park High School (SPHS) students traveled to Atlanta, Georgia, for SkillsUSA’s National Leadership and Skills Conference from June 25-26.

The school’s Entrepreneurship team of Holly Braughton, Jackson DuPee, Evie Elder, Cody Gleason and Tiiu Nomm won the bronze medal out of 22 competing teams. They pitched their student business EcoEssence, in which they designed a smart recycling can, which will not only clean recyclables properly but will also tell customers what is recyclable and offer upcycling ideas for home consumers.

The SkillsUSA championships make up the largest skill competition in the world and cover 1.79 million square feet, equivalent to 31 football fields or 41 acres. More than 6,500 students competed at the national showcase of career and technical education.

“This showcase of career and technical education demonstrates SkillsUSA at its finest,” said SkillsUSA Executive Director Chelle Travis. “Our students, instructors and industry partners work together to ensure that every student excels. This program expands learning and career opportunities for our members.”

First-place state winners were invited to the event to demonstrate their technical, workplace and personal skills in 114 hands-on competitions including robotics, automotive technology, drafting, criminal justice, aviation maintenance and public speaking. Industry leaders from 850 businesses, corporations, trade associations, and unions planned and evaluated the contestants against their standards for entry-level workers. More than 1,200 industry judges and technical committee members participated this year.

A total of 1,250 gold, silver and bronze medals were presented to students on June 27 at the SkillsUSA awards session. Many winners also received industry prizes, tools of their trade or scholarships. The medalists also received a Skill Point Certificate representing workplace readiness in the student's occupational specialty. Students can add the certificate to an employment portfolio. As an indicator of proficiency, Skill Point Certificates were awarded to national contestants who medaled or who met a threshold contest score for their event.

Severna Park High School’s team of Ryan Jamison, Ty Miller, and Michael Pastine also placed 11th in the nation in the category of Business, Management, and Technology for their project. They presented in-school business Ooey Gooey Cookie Sale, in which SPHS students can preorder cookies to be baked and picked up on their way home on Fridays.