Georgia Northwestern Reloads for Title Run
After taking home a bronze medal and multiple Top-10 finishes in the SkillsUSA National Competition in Louisville, Kentucky last summer, Georgia Northwestern Technical College (GNTC) has an entirely new team of collegiate specialists with their eyes on a championship.
“We’ve had really good showings on the state and national level of SkillsUSA over the years,” said GNTC SkillsUSA Coordinator Missy McClain. “The 2019 team really feels like it can perform just as well, if not better. We may be looking at a very successful competition season.”
Chattooga County, Georgia native Taylor Eagle placed third in the nation last summer at the National Leadership and Skills Conference, site of the SkillsUSA National Championship. Eagle competed in the Residential Systems and Installation Maintenance category.
In 2017, Cedartown, Georgia native Ryan Fincher became Georgia Northwestern’s first-ever national champion in SkillsUSA. Fincher took home top honors in the welding category. Just one week ago, Fincher competed in a national competition in Huntsville, Alabama that earned his spot as the SkillsUSA World Team Welder. The team will compete in the WorldSkills Competition taking place in Kazan, Russia the week of August 22. Fincher was also a two-time high school (Cedartown HS, GA) state champion in the same category.
Members qualifying for the Georgia Northwestern SkillsUSA team, which will be competing for national spots at the Georgia SkillsUSA Competition March 21-22 in Atlanta, Georgia, are as follows:
Teamworks (Construction)
- Jesse Flanagan – Polk County
- Joel Paez – Whitfield County
- Gabriel Lopez – Bartow County
- Ryan Banks – Whitfield County
Welding Fabrication
- Dakota Green – Gordon County
- Luke Shehee – Catoosa County
- Timothy Myers – Catoosa County
Welding
- Jack Atwood III – Catoosa County
Automotive Service Technology
- Brandon Neighbors – Catoosa County
Electrical Construction Wiring
- Ethan Mitchell – Gordon County
Industrial Motor Controls
- Norberto Castaneda – Floyd County
Practical Nursing
- Brittany Square – Henry County
- Kimberlee Hall – Gordon County
- Kami Griswold – Bartow County
Medical Assisting
- Ashley Hopper – Floyd County
- Autumn Donaldson – Whitfield County
Internet of Things & Smart Home
- Cole Allen – Chattooga County
Extemporaneous Speaking
- Julianna Matthews – Lee County
Job Interview
- Amy Waters – Chattooga County
Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration
- Chris Roberson – Floyd County
CNC Milling Specialist
- Joshua Wyatt – Chattooga County
Medical Terminology
- Josh Barlow – Floyd County
- Vanessa Colgrove – Chattooga County
- Latrina Travis – Cobb County
Medical Math
- Chelsea Price – Chattooga County
- Jessica Fincher – Polk County
- Kyara Massey – Floyd County
- Jasmine Poindexter – Cobb County
For those who place high enough to qualify, they will earn spots on the Nationals SkillsUSA Team representing the state of Georgia. Now, in its 55th year, the SkillsUSA National Competition will once again take place in Louisville, Kentucky during the association’s National Leadership and Skills Conference, June 24-28.
Contestants on the state and national stage of SkillsUSA compete in more than 100 categories ranging from Advertising Design to Welding and everything in between. SkillsUSA is a national, nonprofit student organization that has developed more than 10 million workers through active partnerships between employers and educators across the nation.
For more information on Georgia Northwestern Technical College’s SkillsUSA organization, you can call 866-983-4682. For information online, visit the college at GNTC.edu, as well as on GNTC’s Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Google+, WordPress, and YouTube channels. GNTC is a unit of the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) and an equal opportunity institute.
GNTC offers more than 200 programs online and on-campus. Campuses are located in Ringgold (Catoosa County Campus), Rome (Floyd County Campus), Calhoun (Gordon County Campus), Rockmart (Polk County Campus), Rock Spring (Walker County Campus), and Dalton (Whitfield Murray Campus).
Georgia Northwestern Technical College provides quality workforce education to the citizens of Northwest Georgia. Students have the opportunity to earn an associate degree, diploma, or a certificate in business, health, industrial, or public service career paths. This past year, 12,785 people benefited from GNTC’s credit and noncredit programs. With an annual credit enrollment of 7,499 students, GNTC is the largest college in Northwest Georgia. GNTC has an additional enrollment of 5,286 people through adult education, continuing education, business and industry training, and Georgia Quick Start. GNTC is a unit of the Technical College System of Georgia and an Equal Opportunity Institution.
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Don Foley
Assistant Director, Marketing and PR
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