Nearly 500 students who are learning skills that are sought after in the Lehigh Valley demonstrated their budding talents while potential future employers looked on at the annual SkillsUSA Council District 11 Championships on Jan. 22. 
Students participated in 62 competitions related to hospitality, architecture, automotive services, culinary arts, health care, building construction, cosmetology and esthetics, criminal justice, cyber security, education, firefighting, graphic communications, information technology, mechatronics, and web design, among other fields.
Andy Hammer, Executive Director of SkillsUSA Council, encouraged leaders from education, business, and community organizations who attended the event to promote the opportunities available in such fields, and to make career and technical education mainstream.
“They are doing amazing things, and it’s because of the opportunities they have in career and technical education,” Hammer said.
SkillsUSA is a partnership of students, schools, and industry working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce. A nonprofit national education association, SkillsUSA serves middle school, high school, and college/postsecondary students preparing for careers in trade, technical, and skilled service occupations. The Lehigh Valley boasts the only SkillsUSA Council that not only offers all the benefits of SkillsUSA national but also professional development conferences and interest clubs year-round here in the Lehigh Valley.
Participating in the competition were students from Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School, Career Institute of Technology, Lehigh Career & Technical Institute, Monroe County Technical Institute, Upper Bucks County Technical School, Colonial Academy, and Northampton Community College.
Seth Winch, a junior from Northern Lehigh High School and Lehigh Career & Technical Institute, competed in mechatronics.
He said the competition let him demonstrate what he had learned in the past three years and showed him what he needs to improve on.
Winch wants to pursue a career in roller coaster engineering. He worked at Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom for two years, where he got to know the maintenance team.
“It really drove me to go into mechatronics,” Winch said.
Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC) was among the sponsors of the SkillsUSA Championships.
“This is always one of our favorite events to support. It's so great to see the entire community supporting students who are preparing for the next step after high school,” said Karianne Gelinas, LVEDC’s Vice President of Regional Partnerships & Talent Strategies.
“Workforce development is essential for the success of all industries, as it ensures skilled, adaptable, competent workers are capable of meeting the industries’ needs,” said Rick Reppert Jr., President of R.L. Reppert, a commercial wall and ceiling contractor in Emmaus and a member of the Board of Directors of Associated Builders and Contractors of Eastern Pennsylvania, another event sponsor.
“Vocational training organizations like SkillsUSA provide significant value to the workforce,” he said.
The competition was held at multiple locations: Agri-Plex at the Allentown Fairgrounds, Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School, Cedar Crest College, Delta Hotels by Marriott Allentown, Greenawalds Fire Co., Lehigh Carbon Community College, Lehigh Career & Technical Institute, Nacci Printing, Universal Technical Institute, and Welder Training & Testing Institute. 
Providing scholarships totaling more than $200,000 were the Automotive Training Center, Universal Technical Institute, D’Olimpio Memorial Fund, and Northampton Community College.
The competitions were judged by more than 250 volunteers from Lehigh Valley employers who are specialists in those fields.
“It is you, the industry leaders, that make sure our students are prepared for the next level,” Hammer said.
This year’s event was the 39th annual SkillsUSA District 11 Championships. Last year, 15 students from District 11 advanced to the SkillsUSA National Championships and four won medals.
(Photos by Rick Kintzel)