(Clarkesville, GA) — Students in a variety of programs at North Georgia Technical College competed at the state SkillsUSA competition and brought home first place in three categories and second and third places in seven additional categories.
This year 26 NGTC students competed in their respective fields of study, and 18 earned medals in their competitions. The four students who placed first will travel to Louisville, Kentucky, in June to compete at the 52nd annual National Leadership and Skills Conference.
“All of our students did a wonderful job representing North Georgia Tech in their own competitions,” says NGTC SkillsUSA Advisor and Marine Technology Instructor Morris Harrison. “These SkillsUSA competitions provide such a memorable learning experience that will only help them grow in their future careers. They each put a lot of time and hard work into their preparation, and we congratulate them on a job well done. We are extremely proud of their accomplishments.”
First place winners were Kristin Dignen of Blairsville in Job Skill Demonstration; Mike Allen of Clarkesville in Marine Service Technology; Nathan Miller of Lavonia in Robotics and Automation Technology; and Caleb Sowell of Canon in Robotics and Automation Technology.
Second place winners included Joel Nelms of Cleveland in Automotive Service Technology; Leland Rodgers of Blairsville in Marine Service Technology; Brad Budd of Hephzibah in Photography; Makenzie Hurley of Demorest in Television (Video) Production; Morgan Hayward of Demorest in Television (Video) Production; and Charity Riley of Young Harris in Criminal Justice.
Receiving third place medals were Danielle Kay of Toccoa in Crime Scene Investigation; Victoria Glenn of Sautee Nachoochee in Crime Scene Investigation; Justin Wheeler of Toccoa in Crime Scene Investigation; Georgia Zumwalt of Jefferson in Digital Cinema Production; Drake Schaetzle of Hartwell in Digital Cinema Production; Matthew Camp of Roswell in Marine Service Technology; Christopher Bragg of Lavonia in Mechatronics; and Timothy White of Decatur in Mechatronics.
Other NGTC students who also competed at the state level were Benjamin McCauley of Canon in Culinary Arts; Cody Gee of Martin in Electrical Construction Wiring; Charles Lee of Homer in Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration; Timothy Owensby of Hartwell in Industrial Motor Control; Austin Shirley of Clayton in Marine Service Technology; Gavin Lewis of Grayson in Medical Math; Walter Sippel of Dawsonville in Photography; and Brian Barnes of Toccoa in Photography.
SkillsUSA is a national career and technical student organization with chapters at high schools and colleges across the country.
PHOTO: Back (l to r): NGTC Acting President Dr. Mark Ivester; Georgia Zumwalt, Digital Cinema; Drake Bragg, Mechatronics; Drake Schaetzle, Digital Cinema; Justin Wheeler, CSI; Victoria Glenn, CSI; Brad Budd, Photography; Danielle Kay, CSI; Mike Allen, Marine Service; Leland Rogers, Marine Service; Morgan Heyward, TV Production; Caleb Sowell, Robotics & Automation; Makenzie Hurley, TV Production; Kristen Dignen, Job Demonstration. Not pictured: Matt Camp, Marine Service; Joel Nelms, Auto Tech; Nathan Miller, Robotics & Automation; Timothy White, Mechatronics; and Charity Riley, Criminal Justice.
