Alamo Community Colleges News & Events

CONTACT FOR SKILLSUSA-TEXAS: James Wright, College/Postsecondary Division State Director
(210) 921-4654
Email: jwright@mail.accd.edu
Online: http://www.texasskillsusa.org

CONTACT:  John Dendy, Public Information Officer
(210) 531-3259
Email:  jdendy@mail.accd.edu

St. Philip's College Students Excel at 2008 SkillsUSA Texas Competition

College scores personal best as eight from SPC advance to National Championships in Kansas City, Mo.
Campus-run workforce education event highlighted high-tech skills of college students statewide

SAN ANTONIO --- St. Philip’s College scored an academic personal best in an important workforce education program. Eight of its students were recognized as first-place recipients when the college hosted the 36th SkillsUSA Texas-College/Postsecondary Division Leadership and Skills Championships and Conference on the SPC-Southwest Campus.

St. Philip’s College entered more than 25 college students in the event and close to 30-percent of those students placed first. “I understand it’s the college’s personal best result,” said James Wright, State Director of the SkillsUSA Texas College/Postsecondary Division.

SkillsUSA is a large part of a global workforce education partnership for students, instructors, governments and business, said Wright. More than 375 of Texas’ top community and technical college students participated, and many SPC students posted outstanding results (see sidebar). Students from the record-setting group are Cornelio Ontiveros (Customer Service); Abraham Saenz (Related Tech Math); Albert Lizalde (Carpentry); Joseph Wilgen (Plumbing); Trevor Halvorson (Aviation Maintenance); Timothy Borack (Residential Wiring); Koby Vaughn (Diesel Equipment); and Abraham Saenz (Industrial Motor). Ontiveros, an SPC Welding Program student, was elected to serve a second year as SkillsUSA Texas Postsecondary Division Student Officer President.

“The overall (Texas) conference was a success,” said Wright. “The competitive performances of our St. Philip’s College students at the conference were exemplary and reflected great credit upon themselves, their instructors, the college and the ACC district as a whole,” said Wright.

SkillsUSA organizers run competitive educational events in a local-state-national sequence each year. First-place students in the Texas state round that is sponsored by SPC qualified to compete among the top tier of America’s career and technical students at a national championship in Kansas City, Mo., said Wright. The weeklong Nationals will entail competitions, a TECHSPO that is the nation's largest trade show in trade and industrial education, a career fair, and student government sessions.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony opened the Texas-level competition at Southwest Campus. A local version of TECHSPO and a Career and Health Fair were also offered in addition to the competition. Each Alamo Community College campus took part in different ways, from students to faculty and staff.

Texas students entered the 2008 event in such categories as diesel technology, crime scene investigation, firefighting, cosmetology, dental assisting, nurse assisting, medical math and TV news anchoring. Education, labor and management specialists observed the event. The students reinforced to the observers that the future workforce of Texas is preparing and on track, Wright said.

For information on the 2009 Texas-level event at SPC contact James Wright at (210) 921-4654, by email at jwright@mail.accd.edu or online at http://www.texasskillsusa.org.