"What's New" - Fall, 2004

The smell of a good, old fashioned barbecue wafting through the crisp fall air ... does it get any better than that? It does if that barbecue is making your SkillsUSA chapter a trunkload of money!

With Carhartt’s “Grilling for Dollars” program, your chapter provides the grill and the volunteers to prepare and sell the food. Carhartt takes care of the rest. They’ll line you up with a local retailer to supply promotion and a parking lot, along with $250 for food and drinks.

Interested? First, find out if there’s a Carhartt retailer near you by entering your school’s ZIP code into the retailer database at www.carhartt.com.

Next, contact your state SkillsUSA director and let him or her know you’re interested. Directors will contact Carhartt on your behalf once they determine how many schools in the state are interested in the program. (Find your state director’s contact information at www.skillsusa.org/dir4.html.) So, let the grilling begin!

Relive your memories of national conference with the 2004 NLSC Video Scrapbook DVD. And if you weren't there, see what you missed. Find out more at www.skillsusa.org/store/videos.html.

Communications, teamwork, health and safety issues. These are just some of the areas covered by the National Occupational Competency Testing Institute (NOCTI) Workplace Readiness Assessment.

Developed with the input of national leaders, the assessment focuses on the essential employability skills that students and employees need to succeed in today’s competitive market. Now you can gain an edge on preparation for this assessment with a new study guide developed by SkillsUSA and NOCTI. The guide offers practice tests, study tips and other helpful features. Find out more and order it online at www.skillsusa.org/store/workplace.html.

If you were searching for one word to sum up the 2004 National Leadership and Skills Conference in Kansas City, Mo., a good choice might be “most.”

After all, the 2004 NLSC featured the most registered attendees ever at 7,992, the most exhibitors ever for TECHSPO and Career Fair at 115, the most Skills University seminars ever at 58, the most competitions ever at 77, the most competitors ever at 4,526, and the most collective fun ever experienced at the national conference since its inception. (Okay, maybe that last “most” isn’t really quantifiable, but just look at these pics! Click on each one for a larger version.)

The whirlwind week began with fireworks — literally — at the Opening Ceremony. Army Maj. Gen. Michael Rochelle, the keynote speaker, paraphrased the late Ronald Reagan as he exhorted the crowd to “be a beacon, like a shining city on a hill.”

From there, the week just kept rolling, highlighted by the immensity of the SkillsUSA Championships and capped by an emotional Awards Ceremony, where the nation’s best were duly recognized for their pride-worthy achievements.

Other memorable moments included a free outdoor concert under the stars, a trip to Worlds of Fun amusement park and the continuing growth of what has become an annual community service event sponsored by Timberland PRO and City Year. This year’s event included more than 700 SkillsUSA members repairing and restoring the grounds of two separate facilities serving troubled youth.

Don’t look for any of these “mosts” to last too long in the SkillsUSA record books, however. After all, if you look hard enough, you can almost make out the next NLSC on the distant horizon.