FONTANA, CA – Sixty-four Summit High School students showcased a wide array of workforce skills in industries like cyber security, entrepreneurship, robotics and automation technology, web/t-shirt design, and more during the 57th California State SkillsUSA Leadership and Skills Conference.

Eighteen Summit High students qualified for medalist honors, including three golds, at the annual SkillsUSA Championships in California, which put the state’s most highly skilled career technical education (CTE) students in head-to-head competition from April 4-7.

A total of five Summit High students combined to win three gold medals at state to punch their tickets to the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference from June 19-23 in Atlanta. Imran Chaudhery and Daniel Shaftary won gold in Cyber Security, Joseph Fuerte and Ethan Jennex took home top honors in Robotics and Automation Technology, and Octavio Reyna finished atop of Industrial Motor Control.

SkillsUSA competitions are designed to rigorously test and celebrate students by showcasing their science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) skills learned throughout their high school’s CTE pathways.

“The students are the most rewarding part of what I do. Seeing them dress up in professional SkillsUSA attire and watching them learn and grow as they prepare to be future professionals is beyond rewarding,” Summit High CTE Department Chair Valerie McClellan said. “SkillsUSA can be life-changing for a student because it provides an opportunity for students to not only pursue career goals but accomplish them.”

Summit High’s 64 students earned 41 medals to qualify for state at the Region 6 SkillsUSA competition in January and February, which included students from San Bernardino, Riverside, Orange, San Diego, Inyo, and Imperial counties.

Summit High seniors Timothy Ching, Abigail Garcia, Julian Perez, and Christopher Sarres earned a silver medal in the SkillsUSA State Entrepreneurship Competition for their group business plan for an e-commerce brand entitled Infinite Ties. All four credited their school’s CTE programs and SkillsUSA for opening their eyes to future possibilities.

“This experience has opened up a pathway for me and provided me with a lot of skills I can take into my future,” Sarres said. “I have always wanted to own my own business, and this has helped me develop better speaking skills, conversational tactics, and self-awareness.”

PHOTO CAPTIONS:

FUSD_SKILLS1: Summit High School students competed in a range of competitions at the SkillsUSA California State Championship. Ten Summit High students earned medals at the state competition, including three gold medals to advance to the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference from June 19-23 in Atlanta.

FUSD_SKILLS2: Sixty-four Summit High School students qualified for the 57th California State SkillsUSA Leadership and Skills Conference and competed against the state’s most highly skilled career technical education (CTE) students in head-to-head competition.

FUSD_SKILLS3: Summit High School student Ethan Loc presents his pin design at the 57th California State SkillsUSA Leadership and Skills Conference. SkillsUSA competitions rigorously test and celebrate students by showcasing their science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) skills learned throughout their high school’s career technical education (CTE) pathways.