Nine Penn College Students Advance to SkillsUSA Nationals
Published 04.11.2011
Nine Pennsylvania College of Technology students, gold medalists at the SkillsUSA Pennsylvania Leadership and Skills Conference held April 6-8 at the Hershey Lodge, have won the right to compete at the national level this summer.
The gold medalists, who will travel to Kansas City, Mo., for the National Leadership and Skills Conference from June 19-24, were among 14 students who successfully competed in their respective statewide vocational events. Four students placed second and another finished third.
Penn College's first-place awardees, their hometowns and their areas of competition are: Bryn F. Behrenshausen, Sinking Spring, Computer Maintenance Technology; Owen R. Boyle, Bloomsbury, N.J., Collision Repair Technology; Carl J. Burns, Sweet Valley, Aviation Maintenance Technology; Aaron C. Dressler, Mount Pleasant Mills, Automotive Refinishing; Micah E. Hoover, Souderton, Welding; Charles (Brad) Livezey Jr., Solebury, Residential Wiring; Krista M. Miller, Cleona, Architectural Drafting; Lewis D. Robinson, Bellefonte, Culinary Arts; and Jennifer R. Seifert, Williamsport, Plumbing.
Second-place finishers were Adam J. Becker, Northampton, Precision Machining Technology; Matthew D. Romanowski, Bethlehem, Masonry; Darrin W. Smith, Butler, Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning; and Troy C. Weimer, Cleona, Technical Drafting.
Robert Marchese, Pine Brook, N.J., won a third-place medal in Automotive Service Technology. Also representing Penn College was Matthew A. Johnson, Mill Creek, who competed in Carpentry.
Faculty advisers for the college's SkillsUSA participants are Roy A. Klinger, instructor of automotive technology; Larry B. Leavitt, associate professor of automotive technology; and Edward L. Roadarmel, assistant professor of drafting and computer aided design.
This year's roster of winners brings to 87 the number of Penn College students who have advanced to national competition; 24 won medals at that level.
SkillsUSA is a national nonprofit organization of more than 300,000 teachers and students high school and postsecondary who are preparing for careers in trade, technical and skilled service occupations.
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