The winners of the annual SkillsUSA Championships in Collision Repair Technology were announced June 25, 2010, at the Awards Ceremony of the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference in Kansas City. More than 5,600 career and technical education students joined in the hands-on competition in 96 different trade, technical and leadership fields. The philosophy of the Championships is to reward students for excellence, involve the industry in directly evaluating student performance and keep training relevant to employers’ needs. SkillsUSA students not only excel in their technical skills, but in employability skills as well.
The Collision Repair Technology Committee requires students to compete in the following areas: metal work, an A.S.E. test, structural damage analysis, reconciling an estimate with published time guides, plastic identification and repair and welding. Contestants are judged on the overall appearance of the finished products and proper safety practices as they race against the clock and other competitors.
The 2010 winner of the SkillsUSA Collision Repair Technology Contest for the Secondary Gold Medal was Chance Brickner from the Sentinel Career Center in Tiffin, Ohio. His instructor is Carl Rusch.
The 2010 winner of the SkillsUSA Collision Repair Technology Contest for the Post-Secondary Gold Medal was Kevin Massey from Morgan Community College in Fort Morgan, Colorado. His instructor is Tim Grauberger.
State Farm Insurance sponsors the trip to Las Vegas for the winners and their instructors to experience the SEMA Show. With the Paint, Body & Equipment area being more prominent this year and the added educational sessions specific to the paint and body market, SEMA is an excellent fit for these future industry leaders. As many of the paint and body organizations begin to work with SEMA, it makes it a more valuable resource for the industry.