CVCC’s SkillsUSA program receives two chapter honors, 19 medals at nationals
The Catawba Valley Community College SkillsUSA program continued to build on its impressive legacy this past weekend at the 2022 SkillsUSA National Championship Conference held in Georgia.
06/30/2022
For the eighth year in a row, the Red Hawk SkillsUSA program received the Outstanding Chapter award, and it also added its sixth-straight Model of Excellence honor, which goes to the top 24 chapters in the entire country.
Catawba Valley Community College is the only school out of the 19,000 who participate in SkillsUSA to receive these honors the past six years.
“Our trip to the 2022 SkillsUSA national championship was very special because it was the first in-person conference in three years due to COVID-19,” said Tammy Muller, executive director for CVCC’s SkillsUSA program. “We are so proud of our students and advisors’ performance in this year's championship. Their performance set us apart from other schools.”
Individually, 19 CVCC students were among the top-three finishers in their respective group, including four gold medalists — Stephanie Huitron and Luis Gonzalez (Model of Excellence); Lauren Land, Charlotte Zimmerman, Makala Pitman and Luke Towery (Entrepreneurship); Haley Anderson, Britney Sermon and Julia Menzies (Outstanding Chapter); and Brooks Kahn and Luke Loftin (Robotics: Urban Search and Rescue).
Joshua Rodriguez received the lone silver medal for CVCC’s SkillsUSA program. Rodriguez was honored in the Screen Printing category.
Bronze medal recipients included Pablo Becerril-Osornio and Tristan King (Digital Cinema); Jody Laws, Gabriel Marks and Lando Rao (Engineering Technology & Design); Jamie Bruckmann (Pin Design); and Danielle Malanowski (Prepared Speech - College).
“Our college won the most medals of any school in the southeastern United States — winning four gold, one silver and four bronze,” Tammy Muller said. “We are also very proud that we finished in the top-ten in 16 different competitions, which was truly amazing coming out of COVID-19. It is so rewarding to work with our SkillsUSA students and advisors because we are making a difference in our students’ lives and our community.”
Twenty-six of the 32 CVCC students who went to the SkillsUSA National Championship also placed inside the top 10 of their respective division, including Brandon Fox (fourth place - CNC Turning), Emma Maltba (fifth place - Advertising Design), Patrick Welch (sixth place - CNC Technician), Chase Collins (seventh place - Extemporaneous Speaking), Dylan Steinmetz (eight place - CNC Milling Specialist), Phoebe Stewart (eighth place - photography) and Marcus Moore (HCAM - 10th place in prepared speech).
The remaining national finalists at CVCC included Khanh Linh Nguyen, Aesha Patel, Phiona Patel and Andrea Wise (Challenger High School - Health Knowledge Bowl); Christopher Galan-Duran (Challenger High School - Medical Math); and Braden Huffman (Bunker Hill High School - Welding)
“We are very proud of all of our students because they work so hard to achieve their goal of being a national champion, but we are even more proud them because they are so professional in the way they represent CVCC and themselves,” said Gary Muller, CVCC Executive Dean of Economic Development and Corporate Education. “We look forward to seeing the great things they are going to do in their careers and lives.”
To learn more about the SkillsUSA program at CVCC, visit CVCC SkillsUSA website or contact Tammy Muller at 828-327-7000 x4323 or email tmuller@cvcc.edu
PHOTO OF 4: CVCC SkillsUSA students Luis Gonzalez and Stephanie Huitron; Tammy Muller, executive director for CVCC’s SkillsUSA program; and Chelle Travis, SkillsUSA Executive Director.
PHOTO OF 6: Aaron Tallman, Advertising and Graphic Design instructor; Tammy Muller, executive director for CVCC’s SkillsUSA program; CVCC SkillsUSA student Luis Gonzalez; SkillsUSA National Executive Director Chelle Travis; CVCC SkillsUSA student Stephanie Huitron; and Gary Muller, CVCC Executive Dean of Economic Development and Corporate Education.
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