Ten of our talented and hardworking students involved in SkillsUSA participated in the SkillsUSA State Leadership Conference on November 24-25.
Students participating in the conference were Drew Bennett, Owen Blanchard, Camden Bonnett, Izzy Decker, Kylee Gamache, Breanna Kempf, Lauryn Lovett, Madison Markwell, Emily Sadlowski, and Shelby Senn.
The students developed leadership skills that they were able to share with the rest of the school's SkillsUSA chapter upon their return. One of the projects they participated in involved putting together bicycles for the Boys & Girls Club.
Each SkillsUSA chapter built three bikes as part of the project, for a total of 30 bikes. As part of this competitive project, the students had to correctly answer questions from SkillsUSA advisors in order to earn parts necessary to assemble each bike. The students also had to film a video, make a presentation and create a poster as part of the project.
On the first day of the conference, students attended workshops to develop leadership skills. Topics included networking, how to interest fellow students into joining SkillsUSA and what it takes to lead a chapter.
"It was impressive to see the students in a different environment," said Alexandra Gearty, FCTS SkillsUSA faculty advisor. "They really came out of their shells. They dressed professionally and worked as a team. It was nice to see them network and create opportunities for success."
A number of students won awards and/or certificates at the Conference. Shelby Senn won the Rising Star Personal Skills medal and Bre Kempf won gold medals for Community Service Presentation and Community Service Video Project.
The following students earned Leadership Award Credentials. The certificate is earned by passing a test based on the Essential Skills of the SkillsUSA Frameworks: Drew Bennett, Emily Sadlowski, Shelby Senn, Isabella Decker, Camden Bonnett, Kylee Gamache, and Madison Markwell.