Kishwaukee College SkillsUSA team members concluded a successful season with medalists at the state and national levels.
SkillsUSA is a national organization helping prepare students for trade professions. SkillsUSA hosts annual competitions for career and technical education (CTE) students to showcase their hands-on training and abilities.
In April, 22 members of Kish’s SkillsUSA chapter qualified for the SkillsUSA Illinois State Leadership & Skills Conference in Peoria, participating in the Diesel Equipment Technology, Heavy Equipment Operation, Nurse Assisting and Power Equipment Technology categories.
Brayden Zuke finished in first place to earn the state title in Power Equipment Technology, with teammates Matthew Stalcup placing second and Walter Popp placing third. In Nurse Assisting, Abel Huerta placed first — winning the state title for the second year in a row — and Regan Fletcher placed second. Ryan Mehochko placed third in Heavy Equipment Operation.
By winning their respective categories at the state level, Zuke and Huerta qualified to compete with more than 6,800 students in the SkillsUSA Championships during the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference this June in Atlanta, Ga. Huerta placed fourth in the Nurse Assisting competition, and Zuke placed 13th in the Power Equipment Technology competition.
Don Flink, Assistant Professor of Diesel Power Technology, coaches the Kish SkillsUSA team.
“We had an outstanding season thanks to our students’ dedication and teamwork. I’m proud of every member who pushed themselves to compete this year, and the results reflect their hard work,” Flink said.
Kish’s SkillsUSA team includes members from various CTE programs offered by the College. Learn more about CTE opportunities at Kish at kish.edu/cte.
There is virtually no limit to what you can achieve at Kish, and we will be here for you every step of the way.