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July 9, 2021 – Nathan Brinkley of Mocksville, NC, has won the SkillsUSA national championship competition in computer numerical control (CNC) machining. The SkillsUSA Championships, held virtually this year, took place June 1-18, 2021, as part of the 57th SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference (NLSC), a showcase of career and technical education students. During the conference, approximately 3,700 outstanding career and technical education student state contest winners competed in over 100 different hands-on trade, technical and leadership fields. 117 North Carolinians from 19 high schools and 8 community colleges participated in the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference virtually.
Brinkley is a graduate of Davidson-Davie Community College. “We are very proud of Nathan’s commitment and accomplishment. He is a very hard-working student and is highly deserving of any recognition he receives,” said Kerry Smith, Brinkley’s instructor at Davidson-Davie. He and the other students that participated in the SkillsUSA national championship competition are true champions in their dedication to excellence in their trade and their leadership skills.
During the national competition, Brinkley and other students worked against the clock and each other, proving their expertise in occupations like electronics, computer-aided drafting, precision machining, automotive, welding, medical assisting, cosmetology and culinary arts. All contests are run with the help of industry, trade associations, and labor organizations, and test competencies are set by industry. In addition, leadership contestants demonstrated their skills in several Leadership Development competitions, which included both prepared and extemporaneous speaking, engaging in both individual and team presentations.
Top student winners received gold, silver and bronze medallions. Many also received prizes such as tools of their trade and/or scholarships to further their careers and education. The SkillsUSA Championships is for high school, middle school and college-level students who are members of SkillsUSA.
North Carolina was well represented in the SkillsUSA Championships, earning a total of 33 medallions (tied for the sixth-highest total medal count in the nation). Students earned 19 gold, 1 silver, and 13 bronze medals. Davidson-Davie Community College has scholarship funding available for CNC Machining thanks to the Gene Haas Foundation. Please contact Kerry Smith (Kerry_Smith@DavidsonDavie.edu) to discuss opportunities in machining and all skilled trades.
SkillsUSA is a nonprofit partnership of education and industry founded in 1965 as Vocational Industrial Clubs of America (V.I.C.A.) to strengthen our nation’s skilled workforce. Driven by employer demand, SkillsUSA helps students develop necessary personal and workplace skills along with technical skills grounded in academics. This SkillsUSA Framework empowers every student to succeed at work and in life, while helping to close the skills gap in which millions of positions go unfilled. Through SkillsUSA’s championships program and curricula, employers have ensured schools are teaching relevant technical skills, and with SkillsUSA’s new credentialing process, they can now assess how ready potential employees are for the job. SkillsUSA has hundreds of thousands of members nationwide in high schools, middle schools and colleges, covering over 130 trade, technical and skilled service occupations, and is recognized by the U.S. Departments of Education and Labor as integral to career and technical education. With the addition of our alumni, membership last year was over 400,000. SkillsUSA receives in-kind and financial support from more than 650 national partners. SkillsUSA has served more than 13.8 million members since 1965. For more information, go to SkillsUSA.org and SkillsUSAnc.org.
Davidson-Davie Community College (www.DavidsonDavie.edu), which incorporated Davie County into its name in 2021, is a fully accredited, multi-campus college where students of all ages and backgrounds pursue academic and career-focused education in order to build successful futures. As one of 58 institutions within the North Carolina Community College System, Davidson-Davie offers more than 40 degree and professional certificate programs, as well as affordable college-credit coursework to students who plan to transfer to four-year schools. With a mission to serve the changing needs of students competing in a global environment, Davidson-Davie is committed to quality education, innovative and equitable learning experiences, training, and support across a wide range of 21st-century career fields.