Latest news with #SkillsUSATexasPostsecondaryLeadershipandSkillsConference
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
TSTC students in West Texas qualify for national SkillsUSA competition
Apr. 15—ABILENE — Four Texas State Technical College students representing the West Texas campuses recently qualified for the upcoming 2025 SkillsUSA National Postsecondary Leadership and Skills Conference. One two-member team and two individuals won gold medals in their respective events at the SkillsUSA Texas Postsecondary Leadership and Skills Conference held in Corpus Christi earlier this month. Kelly Coontz and Elizabeth Hammons qualified in the Emergency Medical Technician event, Shawn Couet won Electronics Technology and Samantha Trevino won Medical Assisting. The four students will compete in the national SkillsUSA event June 23-27 in Atlanta, Georgia. For the second consecutive year, a TSTC Emergency Medical Services team from Abilene captured the Emergency Medical Technician gold medal. Coontz, of Pearland, and Hammons, of Richland, Mississippi, were excited about the competition and the win. Both students are currently enrolled in Emergency Medical Services — EMT. "It was a very friendly competition, mostly focused on being the best you can be," Koontz said in a news release. "It is good to know the quality of students TSTC, especially TSTC in Abilene, is putting out at a national level." "Winning made us feel that going through the classes and the skills we have been taught was rewarding," Hammons said. "Winning for the second straight year makes us proud." Couet, a current Electromechanical Technology student from Kerrville, said winning the state gold medal will help him during the national event. "This will give me a baseline on what to study for nationals," he said. "I now know what my strengths and weaknesses are and can work on them." Trevino, a Vocational Nursing student from Abilene, said she was "shocked" to learn that she won a gold medal. "I went into the competition with the skills I have learned from school and on the job, and won," she said. "I am excited to be going to nationals. This is a humbling experience and something I was not expecting." Also during the state event, three other West Texas students earned medals. The team of Rachelle Arthur and Gerardo Carrillo, both current Electromechanical Technology students, earned silver in Mechatronics, while Vocational Nursing student Kelly Perry received the bronze medal in Nurse Assisting. SkillsUSA is a professional organization focused on employability, leadership and technical skills that help college students pursue successful careers and be part of a skilled workforce. SkillsUSA has more than 100 specific contests at the state and national events in which students can compete, from 3D Visualization and Animation to Welding Sculpture. Registration for TSTC's summer and fall semesters is underway. For more information, go to
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
TSTC's Breckenridge campus to be well represented at SkillsUSA
Mar. 26—BRECKENRIDGE — Texas State Technical College's Breckenridge campus will be represented by eight students at the 2025 SkillsUSA Texas Postsecondary Leadership and Skills Conference April 2-5 in Corpus Christi. SkillsUSA is a professional organization focused on employability, leadership and technical skills that help college students pursue successful careers and be part of a skilled workforce. It has more than 100 specific contests at the state and national events in which students can compete, from 3D Visualization and Animation to Welding Sculpture. Three Vocational Nursing students will be among those in the competition. Erica Hernandez and Kianna Womack will compete in Nurse Assisting. Samantha Trevino entered the Medical Assisting event. "I decided to be part of the SkillsUSA event because I am very competitive," Hernandez said in a news release. Womack said she will prepare for the event with Hernandez's help. "It is exciting to represent TSTC, and I look forward to working with Erica to make sure we are ready," Womack said. In Nurse Assisting, competitors will have to demonstrate knowledge and skill in performing personal care, encouraging patient independence and assisting with ambulation. Demonstration of standard infection control procedures used in basic nurse assisting will also be judged. Trevino said she chose Medical Assisting for a simple reason. "I have done a lot of that before, so I am more confident in that category," she said. Trevino will be judged on skill, speed, use of correct safety measures, and ability to interact personally with a patient. The competition consists of various stations associated with skills that might be found in an ambulatory medical office or clinic. In the Welding events at SkillsUSA, Osbaldo Pacheco, who is in his second semester of Welding Technology, will be teamed with Elijah Chisholm and Alejandro Franco for the Welding Fabrication event. Chisholm and Franco are Breckenridge High School students enrolled in TSTC's dual credit program. "We are getting to know each other preparing for the event," Pacheco said. "I decided to be part of SkillsUSA to see what potential I have in myself. I am proud to be representing Breckenridge at the state contest." Welding Fabrication requires a team of students to use their skills to build a designed project from provided materials. Zachariah Henderson and Luke Holtman entered the Welding event. In this event, students will receive competition drawings and a set of welding procedure specifications that conform to the latest edition of American Welding Society standards. "I have done many ag science competitions, so this comes naturally to me," Henderson said. "I am planning to go and have fun. This is going to get me and a lot of people out of their shells." To learn more about TSTC, visit
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Students excited to represent TSTC's Sweetwater campus at SkillsUSA
Mar. 6—SWEETWATER — Four students at Texas State Technical College's Sweetwater campus will be among the competitors at the 2025 SkillsUSA Texas Postsecondary Leadership and Skills Conference April 2-5 in Corpus Christi. SkillsUSA is a professional organization focused on employability, leadership and technical skills that help college students pursue successful careers and be part of a skilled workforce. SkillsUSA has more than 100 specific contests at the state and national events in which students can compete, from 3D Visualization and Animation to Welding Sculpture. Andres Ramirez, an Automotive Technology student, will compete in Automotive Maintenance and Light Repair. Ramirez will have to demonstrate his ability to perform tasks or skills from the standards listed in the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence guidelines. "I decided to compete because I have always been a hands-on learner," Ramirez said in a news release. "This will showcase what I have learned in the program so far." Ramirez learned about the SkillsUSA competition while studying Diesel Equipment Technology at the Fort Bend County campus. "I am glad I get the chance to represent TSTC this year," he said. Three Electromechanical Technology students will be among those representing TSTC. Shawn Couet will compete in Electronics Technology, while Rachelle Arthur and Gerardo Carrillo will team together in Mechatronics. "I like the hands-on work we do, so it made sense to be in the Electronics Technology event," Couet said in the release. "I have learned a lot from practicing for SkillsUSA." In Electronics Technology, Couet will have to demonstrate his knowledge of analog and digital circuitry, his ability to troubleshoot electronic circuits, his ability to construct and test experimental circuits, and his ability to design and select circuit components. Arthur and Carrillo will have to understand complex systems that integrate various elements in the mechanical, fluid power and controls domain, combined with the ability to work in a team environment with people who possess different areas of expertise. "I wanted to compete to see myself advance in the classes," Arthur said. "This will give me an extra skill set and make my resume stronger." Carrillo said his instructor, Toby Styron, has been helping the students prepare for the event. Styron himself won a SkillsUSA national gold medal in 2024. "If we hit a wall while preparing, he is there to guide us," Carrillo said. "He does not hold our hand to make sure we get the right result." To learn more about TSTC, visit
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
TSTC Welding Technology student has knack for building things
Feb. 10—BRECKENRIDGE — Luke Holtman said he likes to build things. After visiting his cousin in Snyder who was making knives, Holtman decided to enroll in a welding class at Springtown High School. He is now expanding his knowledge by studying for a certificate of completion in Welding Technology at Texas State Technical College. "I expected our class to be smaller than it actually is, but it is good to have that one-on-one connection with the instructors," he said in a news release. Leroy Brigman, a Welding Technology instructor, sees quality in Holtman's work. "He has a lot of attention to detail," Brigman said in the release. "His background shows because he is ahead of many of our students. With that, he is always willing to help." Holtman's ability to work on projects led his instructors to ask him to work on a special project. "We wanted him to build a scarecrow for Halloween," Brigman said. "We knew he would put a lot of effort into it." Holtman said once it was completed, he was asked to name it. "I decided on Dirty Steve because that was my father's nickname," he said. "I thought it was fitting because welders get dirty on the job." That project led to an additional request from his instructors. Holtman will be one of five Welding Technology students representing Breckenridge at the 2025 SkillsUSA Texas Postsecondary Leadership and Skills Conference in Corpus Christi to be held April 2-5. "I have not done a lot of competitions before, so this will be exciting," he said. "It is good to see Breckenridge have representation in the SkillsUSA event." SkillsUSA is a professional organization focused on employability, leadership and technical skills that can help college students pursue successful careers and be part of a skilled workforce. SkillsUSA has more than 100 categories in which students can compete, from 3D Visualization and Animation to Welding Sculpture, the release said. One reason that the instructors wanted Holtman to compete was because of his plan to work in the fabrication field. "I have always liked to build things, so it is natural to want to work in fabrication," Holtman said. "I like to see the finished product." According to welders can earn a yearly median salary of more than $48,000 in Texas. Welding jobs were expected to increase 23% between 2020 and 2030 in the state, according to the website. Welding Technology is one of nine programs at TSTC that have money-back guarantees. For more information, visit To learn more about TSTC, visit
