July 9, 2003 -- Forty-eight students from 37 states participated in the graphic communications competition at the annual VICA Skills USA Championships in Kansas City June 26. Contestants were required to produce a job using a computer and page layout software, plan the production cycle, set up and run the job on a Heidelberg press and fold it. Contestants also had to produce proofs and plates using CTP software and equipment, take a 100-question written test and take part in an oral professional assessment. "Students are competing at the SkillsUSA Championships in Kansas City because of their skill, attitude, dedication to excellence and hard work. By reaching this national level they have shown how they are able to step up to the plate. While competing, both secondary and post-secondary students work against the clock and each other to prove their expertise in job skills in occupations like graphic communications," said Jerry Himmelberg, Training Administrator, Banta Publications Group Kansas City and chairman of the program’s graphic communications technical committee. In the secondary division, Ryan Turnmire, Ohio Hi-Point Career Center, Bellefontaine, Ohio, finished first, followed by Vi Nhan, Sammamish High School, Bellevue, Washington, in second place and Elizabeth Owensby, Ozarks Tech Community College, Springfield, Missouri, in third. In the postsecondary division, Joyce Keith, Francis Tuttle Technology Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, finished first, followed by Stephanie Delgado, Hunterdon County Polytech North, Annandale, New Jersey in second place and Rebecca Long, Asheville High School, Asheville, North Carolina in third. Also competing at the secondary level were Richard Goshen, Limestone Career Technology Center, Athens, Alabama; Scott Klohr, Blue Ridge High School, Lakeside, Arizona; Sheri Bottoms, West Campus Technical Center, Fayetteville, Arkansas; Michael Long, Riverside Community College, Riverside, California;Sarah Grodsky, Boulder Tech Educational Center, Boulder, Colorado;Thomas Hinman, H.C. Wilcox RVTS, Meriden, Connecticut; Michael Prentice, Delcastle Tech High School, Wilmington, Delaware;Monterris Easley, Lyman High School, Longwood, Florida; Jason Roberts, R.W. Johnson High School, Gainesville, Georgia; David Salgado, York Community High School, Elmhurst, Illinois; Tim Bogus, North Lawrence Vo-Tech Center, Bedford, Indiana; Ryan Murphy, Mill Creek Center, Olathe, Kansas; Alex Cole, Sanford Vocational Center, Sanford, Maine; Samantha Erikson, Harford Vo-Tech High School, Bel Air, Maryland; Christopher DaCruz, Diman RVTHS, Fall River, Massachusetts; Cody Raquepaw, Bay Arenac Career Center, Bay City, Michigan; Dillon Cordes, Austin High School, Austin, Minnesota; Jennifer Goodwin, Pascagoula High School Vo-Tech Center, Pascagoula, Mississippi; Eric Maguire, Beatrice High School, Beatrice; Nebraska; Melissa Viscera, Concord Regional Tech Center, Concord, New Hampshire; Rene Vogel, Regional Technical Institute, Reno, Nevada; Christine Green, Burlington County Westhampton, Westhampton, New Jersey; Kimberly Rosenthal, Orleans Career and Technical Education Center, Medina; New York; Brock Wellington, New Bern High School, New Bern, North Carolina; Kelly Taylor, O.T. Autry Technology Center, Enid, Oklahoma; Gloritza Bonilla, Reading-Muhlenberg AVTS, Reading, Pennsylvania; Scott Trainor, W.M. Davies Junior Career Tech High School, Lincoln, Rhode Island; Brian McMahan, B.J. Skelton Career Center, Easley, South Carolina; Thomas Campbell, Fulton High School, Knoxville, Tennessee; Stephen Metts, Winston Churchill High School, San Antonio, Texas; Alex Whetman, Taylorsville High School, Salt Lake City, Utah; Charles Cates, Chesterfield Technical Center, Chesterfield, Virginia; and Brandon Church, Wyoming County Vo Tech, Pineville, West Virginia. Also competing in the postsecondary division were Daniel Gregory, Riverside Community College, Riverside, California; Jason Magnes, William McFatter Vo-Tech Center, Davie, Florida; Rachel Murdock, Idaho State University Vo-Techm Pocatello, Idaho; Christopher Hoff, Vincennes University, Vincennes, Indiana; Lori Lero, Kansas ATS, Kansas City, Kansas; Amanda Rice, Frederick County Career & Tech Center, Frederick, Maryland; Regina Weist, Ozarks Tech Community College, Springfield, Missouri; Me Lee Hartline, Stevens College of Technology, Lancaster, Pennsylvania; and Laura Hughes, Dixie State College, Saint George, Utah. SkillsUSA is the national organization for students in trade, industrial, technical and health occupations education.  It sponsors the SkillsUSA Championships annually to recognize the achievements of vocational students and to encourage them to strive for excellence and pride in their chosen occupations. "The SkillsUSA Championships has been called the showcase of technical education," said Himmelberg. "These championships recognize career and technical students who excel in a field like graphic communications, as well as in the leadership development activities that are such an integral part of the SkillsUSA program in the classroom." "Industry involvement in the SkillsUSA Championships program is essential," he continued. "Industry Technical Committee members and judges assume the responsibility for selecting the skills which are to be judged, determining the format of the contests and establishing the standards by which contestants will be judged. This showcase also provides prospective employers with an opportunity to see dedicated, motivated potential employees at work. "It is critical that industry be involved with students, schools and the SkillsUSA program. To continue to meet the needs of both potential employees and prospective employers, the lines of communication between technical education schools and industry must be kept open. Educators need to be able to identify industry's needs and, in turn, develop appropriate curricula," he said. Members of the technical committee are Larry Galinski  and Mark Pellman, Baumfolder; Steve Hall, Boelte-Hall Litho, Inc.; Dave Barabas, Central Missouri State University; Gene Strandberg, Eastern Illinois University; Diane Koch, Graphic Arts Technical Foundation/Printing Industries of America; Ed Ball, Hallmark Cards, Inc.; Larry Kroll and Kip Jarrett, Heidelberg USA, Inc.;  Carol Hurlburt  -  NPES  The Association for Suppliers of Printing, Publishing and Converting Technologies; Jesus Rodriguez, Pittsburg State University; Jim Oldebeken, Printing & Imaging Association of Mid America; Arthur Verwey  and Chris Estes, Xante Corporation. For more information about SkillsUSA-VICA Championships, visit the web site at www.skillsusa.org.