NJ SkillsUSA State Conference Review
The New Jersey SkillsUSA State Conference was held May 2-3 in Somerset County. The New Jersey SkillsUSA Championships showcased the spectacular display of career and technical students of our state in action. More than 2,000 students, vocational educators and industry volunteers participated in this year's event, held at Garden State Exhibit Center and at the nearby hotels. Vocational students competed in 80 different skill and leadership competitions. This 2-day event showcased our business and industry partnership programs. As a result, over 130 students qualified to compete at the national SkillsUSA Championships in June.

Somerset County Freeholder Jack Ciatterelli delivered the keynote address at the Awards Ceremony on Saturday evening. Freeholder Ciatterelli has been a strong supporter of career and technical education, and delivered words of encouragement to the students and advisors in the audience.

The following are a few pictures from this event:

2008 - 2009 NJ SkillsUSA State Officer Team
As part of the opening ceremony of the State Conference on Friday night, 14 students campaigned for a position on the NJ SkillsUSA State Officer Team. After great speeches from each of the candidates, the student delegates elected the following students to serve on the team for the upcoming year:

Billy Bauer - Bergen County Academies
Isabel Parilis - Bergen Academies
Nicole Kim -Camden County Pennsauken
Richelle Lee - Camden County Pennsauken
Mya Mahankali - Somerset County Vocational Technical High School
Katerina Melekos - Sussex County Technical School
Aaron Orchard - Warren County Technical School

State President Farewell Speech
During the closing ceremony, State President Maria Hera delivered her farewell address to the students in the audience. The following are her remarks:

It is hard to believe that May is finally here. While I am very excited to graduate from high school and move on to the next step in my life, I am reluctant to leave this all behind. A few years ago I would never have been able to imagine the impact this organization would have on my life. Today, I cannot imagine who I would be without this experience. In the few years that I have been involved in this organization I have learned everything from video production to leadership skills and have met amazing people who live everywhere from New Jersey to California. So before I say farewell as your President, I would like to share with you the things I have learned as a member of SkillsUSA and also as a member of your state officer team.
The first year that I became involved in SkillsUSA I decided to compete in Video Product Development. My major is in culinary arts, and I knew absolutely nothing about video production, but I was ready to learn. With a lot of time and hard work, my partner and I won the silver medal. The following year, we decided to go for the gold. With even more time and hard work than the year before, we won the gold medal and went to nationals. At nationals we came in fourth place. And while almost medaling nationally and medaling twice at the state level was amazing, that is not what I took away from the experience. During the competition last year we met two students who were competing against us. While we were waiting to be judged we sat in the room conversing with them. During the awards ceremony the same students were sitting behind us. When the medals were given out, my partner and I took the gold medal, and unfortunately the other two students did not medal at all. However, when we walked off the stage, those two students who had competed against us were the first ones standing by the stairs waiting to congratulate us. The sportsmanship and professionalism of those two students is exactly what this organization is about, and that is exactly what I took away from the experience.

Those two students were not the only amazing people I have met through SkillsUSA. In fact, the people I have met are what I will remember the most. This past September I had the opportunity to attend SkillsUSA's annual Washington Leadership Training Institute in Washington D.C. However, due to unforeseen circumstances I had to attend the conference by myself, without any other officers from New Jersey and without an advisor. Of course I was extremely nervous, but within minutes I realized that I had no reason to be nervous. Everyone there was extremely friendly and excited to "adopt" me. I met some really incredible people there, some of whom I still keep in touch with.

Of course, none of the people I met can compare to the people standing onstage with me right now. In this past year that I have served as your state president I was lucky enough to serve with 9 remarkable officers. We wouldn't always agree on everything at first, but after our sometimes rather long discussions and a lot of collaboration, we always came to a good decision. This year's state officer team was full of ideas, originality, hard work, and laughs. I could not have picked a better group of people to work with if I had to.

That being said, I cannot end my year without thanking several people. First of all, I would like to thank my state officer team for a wonderful year. You guys are amazing, and it has been a pleasure being on a team with you. On behalf of the team I would also like to thank Ms. Vincenz, Ms. Blaetz, Ms. Hart, and Mr. Cooper for always guiding our team and helping us at our meetings. We would especially like to thank Mr. Carey for everything he does for our team, and our state as a whole. I would also like to thank my advisors and my chapter for all of their support. I would like to thank my advisor Mrs. Brace, or as we know her, Chef B. Without you I would have never been introduced to this organization, I would never have learned everything that I have learned from SkillsUSA, and I certainly would not be standing on this stage today giving this speech. Thank you for always guiding, encouraging, and believing in me. And last but not least, I would like to thank each and everyone one of you for allowing me to represent you this past year. It truly has been an honor to serve as your president.

The 2007-2008 State Officer Team

NJ SkillsUSA Alumni Drive
New Jersey SkillsUSA extending its Alumni Drive!

We are continuing to challenge all local chapters to increase our Alumni membership. All chapters are encouraged to sign-up at least 5 high school seniors who will be graduating from your technical program this spring, as new alumni members until June 30th. This free membership will keep students informed about SkillsUSA news and help them to stay connected to SkillsUSA opportunities at the local, state and national levels.

Simply have your seniors sign-up online at SkillsUSA Alumni Sign-up

2008 NJ SkillsUSA State Pin
Congratulations to Fabiola Artiga of Passaic County Technical Institute for winning the gold medal in Pin Design!

Champions 5K Run to Benefit Alumni Organization
SkillsUSA Alumni will be holding twilight 5K Champions Run during national conference and we invite your state to be part of this special inaugural event! Runners, joggers, walkers or groups are all welcome.

The race takes place on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 at 6 p.m. at Liberty Memorial Park, across from Union Station and the Westin Hotel. This is conveniently right before the start of the casual Champions festival, so you can go from one event right to the next!

Registration is $10 per person before June 1 or $15 after June 1 and includes a unique Champions t-shirt. Awards will be presented at Champions festival to the top 3 males and females in each category: industry partners, professionals (any adult affiliated with the conference), students and alumni.

We really encourage state groups and you are welcome to really go all out and show your state pride by wearing matching running outfits, something that reflects your state, etc. We want to make this really fun. If you do not want to run or walk you can always come out to show your support of others.

Those interested in registering should contact Karen Perrino.

NJ SkillsUSA Alumni Among Successful Graduates
The Bergen County Technical Schools presented its annual Successful Graduate Recognition Award to Tramaine Cooper on April 26 at a statewide banquet in Jamesburg hosted by the New Jersey Council of County Vocational-Technical Schools. Over 150 individuals attended the Council's Successful Graduate Recognition Awards Dinner, including the graduates and their families, state officials and members of the New Jersey State Board of Education, county vocational-technical school superintendents, board members, and administrators.

Tramaine graduated from Bergen County Academies in 2004 with a reputation for leadership well beyond his years. He graduated with honors from Fairleigh Dickinson University in 2007, and is in the process of completing his Masters degree. Presently, Tramaine works for Wyndham Hotels and Resorts. Tramaine was the New Jersey state president of SkillsUSA while in high school. He twice won the SkillsUSA state gold medal in Prepared Speech and the state gold medal for Entrepreneurship; where he went on to win a silver medal at the national conference.

Each year, the New Jersey Council of County Vocational-Technical Schools recognizes an outstanding graduate from each of New Jersey's 21 counties. The group of distinguished graduates to be recognized by the Council includes business owners, teachers, public servants and professionals from diverse fields including automotive technology, engineering, healthcare and culinary arts.