Delaware students recently brought home awards from the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference.

Sixty-eight Delaware SkillsUSA high school students joined more than 16,000 participants in the 2024 SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference in Atlanta. Students participated in events involving construction trades, video broadcasting, graphic arts, automotive trades, and leadership skills. For the first time, Delaware sent four students to act as delegates and participate in leadership training, advisory boards and national officer elections.

Delaware had students place in the Top 10 as well as receive Skill Point awards, which represent the pinnacle of achievement in demonstrating proficiency and workplace readiness in a student’s occupational specialty (see student names below).

In addition, six students received top honors in three skill demonstration events:

• Clinton Bertollo of New Castle County Vocational Technical School District’s Delcastle Technical High School received a silver medal in sheet metal.
• Noelle Evans also of Delcastle received a bronze medal in screen printing technology.
• The team of Kiara Davis, McKinley Stokley, Ciara Gustin and Piper Drace from Sussex Technical School District’s Sussex Technical High School received a bronze medal for video news production.

The advisers and students, who were for the majority rising juniors and seniors, returned energized from Atlanta. The National SkillsUSA Board of Directors recognized the First State for growing registration, which almost double from the 2023 school year. Delaware’s participation is at its highest it has been in more than a decade.

SkillsUSA is a career and technical student organization that empowers its members to become world-class workers, leaders and responsible American citizens. Its vision is to produce the most highly skilled workforce in the world, providing every member the opportunity for career success.

The SkillsUSA National Championships are career competition events showcasing the best career and technical education students in the nation. Through an investment from business and industry partners of about $36 million, the event occupies a space equivalent to 31 football fields or 41 acres.

Top 10

• Keller Merida-Vazquez, Delcastle Technical High School, industrial motor control
• Kaiden Brown, Delcastle Technical High School, aviation maintenance technology
• Marissa Prouse, POLYTECH School District’s POLYTECH High School, criminal justice
• Clinton Bertollo, Delcastle Technical High School, sheet metal
• Noelle Evans, Delcastle Technical High School, screen printing technology
• Kiara Davis, Sussex Technical High School, video news production
• McKinley Stokley, Sussex Technical High School, video news production
• Ciara Gustin, Sussex Technical High School, video news production
• Piper Drace, Sussex Technical High School, video news production

Skill Point Achievement

• Clinton Bertollo, Delcastle Technical High School, sheet metal
• Noelle Evans, Delcastle Technical High School, screen printing technology
• Kiara Davis, Sussex Technical High School, video news production
• McKinley Stokley, Sussex Technical High School, video news production
• Ciara Gustin, Sussex Technical High School, video news production
• Piper Drace, Sussex Technical High School, video news production
• Aiden Burtell, Delcastle Technical High School, audio-radio production
• Isabella Santillan-Guzman, Delcastle Technical High  School, audio-radio production
• Rebekah Cullen, Sussex Technical High School, pin design
• Myonnah Henry, New Castle County Vocational Technical School District’s Paul M Hodgson Vo-Tech, nail care
• Antonia McCoy Sussex Technical High School, crime scene investigation
• Mia Tritapoe, Sussex Technical High School crime scene investigation
• Sierra Walters, Sussex Technical High School, crime scene investigation
• Rebecca Norland, Polytech High School, television (video) production
• Lacie Vilone, POLYTECH High School, television (video) production
• Marissa Prouse, POLYTECH High School, criminal justice
• Dominick Shorter, Sussex Technical High School, automotive refinishing technology
• Austin Shreve, Paul M Hodgson Vo-Tech, plumbing
• Kimani Weston, Sussex Technical High School, t-Shirt design

Media contact: Alison May, alison.may@doe.k12.de.us, 302-735-4006

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