North, South Students Place at SkillsUSA State Competition

Students from both North and South High Schools were successful at the SkillsUSA state championship held April 14 to 16 in Springfield. 

The competition challenges students in professional areas from interviewing for a job to architecture and engineering. 

Below are the students and teams who placed at state, organized by school. 

NORTH: 

Technical CAD 

• Brandon Walsh: 2^nd place
• Jeff Wall: 3^rd place
• Joe Fiala: 5^th place.

3D Design and Animation 

• The team of Carolos Marungo and Jack Joers: 4^th place 

Java Programming 

• Chris Schnieder: 2^nd place
• Mike Hutchinson: 4^th place.

“Our North High students competed at a high level at state,” said North High School Teacher Tony Ciezadlo in a District 99 press release. “The level of skill these students possess is impressive. They truly represent our future architects, engineers and other skilled workers.”

SOUTH: 

Architectural CAD 

• Chris Behnke – 4^th Place
• Michael Hoffman – 10^th Place
• Jackson Turner  – 9^th Place
• Sergiu Smerica – 7^th Place
• Michael Szubinski - 8^th Place
• Cheyney Tschopp - 6^th Place
• Dan Vurpillat - 2^nd Place

3D Design and Animation 

The team of Luis Salgado and Chris Whitt: 4^th Place in the “3D Design and Animation” competition.

Note: This was the highest finish by South High students in school history.

Job Interview 

The two South High students who competed in the “Job Interview” competition went 1-2 60 other qualifiers from around the state. 

• Allison Koch was the State Champion of Illinois and national qualifier; she has qualified to compete in National SkillsUSA championships in Kansas City this summer.
• Dijana Siljanoska - 2^nd Place

“We are so proud of all 32 students for their strong performances, and to Allison, Dijana and Dan who placed in the top of their categories,” said South High School Teacher Mark Molinari in a District 99 release. “Beyond the results, I was proud to receive so many compliments on our students’ conduct, which is one of the highest measures of a student’s future success.”