Career and Technical Student Organizations (CTSO) add value to the overall development of our Career and Technical Education (CTE). KPBSD students from CTE classes have the opportunity to be involved in the SkillsUSA CTSO organization. This organization, or club, allows students to compete against other students in competitions that involve the use of the skills taught and developed in KPBSD CTE classes. An example of this is the welding competition. Students that are currently enrolled in (or have already taken) a welding class compete against other students across the state in a competency test involving welding. In this particular event students take a structural welding test similar to what a welder would have to do in order to prove his or her competency for a construction company.
Judges, usually from industry, evaluate the welds by visual and bend tests, just like in the real world, and a winner is chosen. Students also compete in leadership competitions. These competitions include: Job Interview, Prepared Speech, Extemporaneous Speech and Quiz Bowl. OurSkillsUSA students that participate in the district, state, and national events get to experience what it’s like to compete in a competitive job market, which is very similar to what they will be experiencing when they compete in the world of work.
Cam Wyatt said, “SkillsUSA is the best keep secret in Alaska. Our kids love it and it is a pure “performance based assessment” that incorporates soft and hard skill sets.”
Alaska State SkillsUSA State conference
March 31 – April 2, 2016
Action Skills
2nd place – Maguire Merriman, Soldotna High School
Carpentry
1st place – Gregory Smith, Homer High School
Crime Scene Investigation
3rd place – Afton Carlson, Soldotna High School
3rd place – Derek Lewis, Soldotna High School
Culinary Arts
3rd place – Brianna Bushnell, Kenai Central High School
Early Childhood Education
1st place – Margaret McGlothen, Soldotna High School
2nd place – Savannah Kreider, Soldotna High School
3rd place – Hannah O’Dell, Soldotna High School
Employment Application Process
1st place – Maguire Merriman, Soldotna High School
Extemporaneous Speaking
1st place – Nolan Bunting, Homer High School
2nd place – Margaret McGlothen, Soldotna High School
Job Interview
1st place – Mara Youngren-Brown, Kenai Central High School
Photography
2nd place – Nolan Bunting, Homer High School
Prepared Speech
1st place – Michael Lewis, Soldotna High School
2nd place – Nolan Bunting, Homer High School
3rd place – Afton Carlson, Soldotna High School
Quiz Bowl, 1st place team
Afton Carlson, Soldotna High School
Ashley Jones, Soldotna High School
Derek Lewis, Soldotna High School
Michael Lewis, Soldotna High School
Maguire Merriman, Soldotna High School
Restaurant Service
1st place – Andrew Agosti, Kenai Central High School
2nd place – Ashley Jones, Soldotna High School
3rd place – Mara Youngren-Brown, Kenai Central High School
Technical Drafting
2nd place – Liam Floyd, Kenai Central High School
Welding
1st place – Hayden Chase, Homer High School
Professional Development Program, Students who Scored 75% or higher
- Soldotna High School, Hannah O’Dell
- Soldotna High School, Savannah Kreider
- Kenai Central High School, Alexis Koroll
- Soldotna High School, Afton Carlson
- Soldotna High School, Ashley Jones
- Kenai Central High School, Andrew Agosti
- Homer High School, Nolan Bunting
2016-2017 SkillsUSA State Officers
- Derek Lewis – Soldotna High School, Historian
