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Lawrence Tech Students
They accepted their awards on stage in the Kemper Arena in Kansas City before a crowd of 11,000 people, including advisors, parents, hundreds of business partners and other competitors from all 50 states and several U.S. territories. Earlier that week they had competed against 56 other teams from across the country. Each of them had achieved the gold standard at their respective state competitions. (Because students competed against a standard, some states qualified two teams for the national event.) The competition involved a PowerPoint presentation and a puppet show that described the team’s efforts in bringing information about good nutrition to the Greater Lawrence community as well as area pre-schoolers. Yessica, Emily and Gloryluz said they were pleased with their performance. Advisors said the team members were cool and confident as they practiced and prepared prior to their presentation. This year’s team not only followed in the footsteps of the 2002 and 2003 GLTS teams who took state gold medals, but echoed the Greater Lawrence team that won silver medals at the national SkillsUSA Championships two years ago. This year, students from Massachusetts took medals in 16 of the 77 competition categories. Because some of the awards were in team events, 32 Massachusetts students came home with gold, silver or bronze medals, as well as prizes and college scholarships donated by Championship's sponsors. More than 1000 corporations, trade associations and labor unions support SkillsUSA. Newell Rubbermaid CEO Joe Galli was the keynote speaker at During the awards program, held in Kemper Arena. He told contestants that each one of them was “in the top two percent in the country just by making it here.” Galli reiterated his company’s support of SkillsUSA through a video, a listing of contests the company finances, and by presenting a giant check for $100,000 to national SkillsUSA director Tim Lawrence. SkillsUSA (begun in the 1960’s as the Vocational Industrial Clubs of America, and later known as VICA) is a partnership of students, teachers and industry working together to ensure that America has a skilled work force. Through leadership events and
competitions on the district, state and national level,
the organization helps students excel in their education
and future technical, and service careers, including
health occupations. SkillsUSA involves nearly 265,000
high school and college/postsecondary students and their
chapter advisors who are professional members.
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Three students from the Greater Lawrence
Technical School, Andover, represented their school and
Massachusetts at the national SkillsUSA Championships in
Kansas City, MO. Yessica Cruz, Gloryluz Rosario and Emily
Marte took national silver medals for their Community
Service project, titled “Choices for
Champions.”