Lockport engineering design students win competition

SkillsUSA held its annual National Leadership and Skills Conference from June 24 through June 28 in Louisville.

This competition was attended by more than 6,500 career and technical education students who competed in 103 trade, technical and leadership fields.

Lockport Township High School had the most teams advance from state to the national championship in the school’s history.

Daniel Arechiga, Jonathan Naughton and Adriana Watson were awarded second place in engineering technology design.

The team was required to design an innovative engineering project, create a model and give a comprehensive presentation.

They were judged on their performance as a professional team by a panel of judges from the engineering field.

In its 16 years competing at SkillsUSA, this was only the second year for LTHS to compete in this particular event. All three silver medalists graduated in June and will be pursuing engineering degrees.

Three other LTHS teams also competed at nationals.

Madaline Aguilar and Maxwell Eallondaro competed in 3D Visualization and Animation. This timed event required the team to create a real-world 3D creative production, using specific resources and design elements.

Alexander Mullin competed in power equipment technology, demonstrating his knowledge and understanding of both two and four cycle engines.

The Teamworks team was comprised of Brett MacHart, Charles Patula, Nicholas Soltys and Lucas Zentmyer. The Teamworks competition required teams to build a construction project using carpentry, electrical, plumbing and masonry skills to demonstrate their ability to work as a team.

The LTHS College and Career Applications teachers, Susan Palis, Jeff Brown, Chris Davis and Mark dela Vega, dedicated many hours after school to prepare their teams for the state and national SkillsUSA competitions.

This helped prepare the students to succeed in competitions such as SkillsUSA, in higher academic pursuits and in the workforce.