TSTC students at North Texas location receive medals at state SkillsUSA conference

(RED OAK, Texas) – Students at Texas State Technical College’s North Texas location won medals in five events at the 2024 SkillsUSA Texas Postsecondary State Leadership and Skills Conference held April 18-20 in Houston.

“We are extremely proud and excited for our SkillsUSA participants,” said Marcus Balch, provost of TSTC’s North Texas location. “We are trying to really increase participation in SkillsUSA and have a really good showing, and I think we did just that.”

SkillsUSA is a professional organization focused on employability, leadership and technical skills that can help college students pursue successful careers and be part of a skilled workforce. SkillsUSA has more than 100 leadership and skills categories.

John Dudek, of Midlothian, won the gold medal in the Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration contest. He is eligible to advance to the 60th annual SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference to be held June 24-28 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Dudek said the state contest had six different troubleshooting stations.

“Most of them were pretty easy,” he said. “I have to admit, working in the field while going to school has helped me out a lot.”

Dudek said he will work with the TSTC HVAC Technology program’s instructors to learn more about refrigeration before his trip to Georgia.

Dudek received an Associate of Applied Science degree in HVAC Technology at TSTC’s recent Spring 2024 Commencement. He works as a technician at Integrity Air Conditioning and Heating in Mesquite. 

Other students receiving medals at the state SkillsUSA conference were:

Silver:

– CNC Programmer: Blas Sotelo

– Welding: Greyson Jones

Bronze:

– CNC 2-Axis Turning Programmer: Joseph Allen

– Welding: Joseph Marshall

For more information on SkillsUSA Texas, go to skillsusatx.org.

Registration for TSTC’s fall semester is underway. For more information, go to tstc.edu.