CONGRATULATIONS TO THE STUDENTS OF NORTHERN CAMBRIA MIDDLE SCHOOL-- SKILLSUSA GOLD MEDALISTS; Congressional Record Vol. 165, No. 119
(House of Representatives - July 16, 2019)
Formatting necessary for an accurate reading of this text may be shown by tags (e.g., <DELETED> or <BOLD>) or may be missing from this TXT display. For complete and accurate display of this text, see the PDF.
[Page H5830]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE STUDENTS OF NORTHERN CAMBRIA MIDDLE SCHOOL--
SKILLSUSA GOLD MEDALISTS
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson) for 5 minutes.
Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in
recognition of the impressive career and technical education students
in Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District.
Career and technical education helps learners of all ages gain
valuable skills that have the potential to lead to good-paying jobs and
rewarding careers. It all starts with our Nation's most valuable
resource: our people. Hardworking men and women and the dedicated
students who have chosen to pursue a technical career are the backbone
of our economy.
As co-chair of the bipartisan House Career and Technical Education
Caucus, I couldn't be happier to congratulate Jakob Dixon of Indiana
County, Pennsylvania, on recently winning a gold medal for his work
with sheet metal at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills
Conference. The 56th annual event took place in Louisville, Kentucky,
and hosted upwards of 6,500 students to compete in more than 100
different skills-based competitions. Jakob will be a senior this fall
in the Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning program at the
Indiana Career Technology Center.
Additionally, in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, Northern Cambria
Middle School celebrated its back-to-back national championships in the
41st annual Technology Student Association national conference in
Washington, D.C., just earlier this month.
More than 8,500 students from across the country competed in 70
different events, including woodworking, programming robots, debate,
and more. Every student from Northern Cambria Middle School who
competed in the contest achieved national recognition as a top 10
finalist.
Mikey Konitsky, Chris Yahner, Peyton Myers, and Braden Moriconi
became national champions in the mechanical engineering competition, a
category they have also won in the Commonwealth State of Pennsylvania.
Additionally, Chris Yahner and his classmate Caleb Born placed third
in the Nation in structural design and engineering, and Garret Link
placed ninth in the Nation for flight endurance.
I am proud of Jakob Dixon and the students of Northern Cambria Middle
School and the many students like them across the Commonwealth and the
country who have chosen to pursue a skills-based career in such a
competitive workforce.
Students like these are in high demand. More than 80 percent of
manufacturers claim talent shortages prevent them from keeping up with
customer demand, and 46 percent of employers say they have difficulty
finding talent, particularly in the skilled trades.
Career and technical education prepare students to be career ready by
providing core academic skills, employability skills, and technical
job-specific skills through hands-on learning opportunities.
We need more students like Jakob, Mikey, Chris, Peyton, Braden, John,
Caleb, and Garret. The value they will add to the American workforce
one day cannot be overstated.
____________________
