Leesburg, Va., Aug. 29, 2025 — A total of 53 SkillsUSA state leaders representing 43 state associations gathered in Cheyenne, Wyo., for their annual State Directors Association (SDA) professional conference. The event, which began with training for new directors, included learning sessions on career competitions, the new SkillsUSA Drive to 65 strategic plan for 2025-2030, conference management, negotiating and contracts, membership growth strategies and more.
SkillsUSA sponsoring partners for the event were CBRE, the National Association of Home Builders, Pathful, Transfr, WyoTech, and American Red Cross.
At the conference, 47 state associations were honored with State Standard of Excellence Awards. These awards recognize the remarkable growth of the SkillsUSA’s State Standards of Excellence Program over the past eight years. The program’s goal is to help state associations establish policies, procedures, and structures that ensure they can deliver exceptional service to their members. Instead of being a competition, it’s a tool for states to benchmark their performance, identify areas for improvement, and better serve SkillsUSA students and teachers. Congratulations to the SkillsUSA directors whose leadership contributed to these award-winning associations.
Recognized for achieving the Bronze Standard of Excellence and establishing a baseline for a healthy association were these state SkillsUSA associations: Arkansas and Indiana.
Recognized for achieving the Silver Standard of Excellence to assure the sustainability of a healthy association were these state associations: Hawaii, Louisiana (High School), North Dakota, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Wisconsin (College/Postsecondary) and West Virginia.
Reaching the pinnacle of achievement by successfully achieving the Gold Standard of Excellence to ensure the continuous growth of their association were these states: Alabama, Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia (College/Postsecondary), Georgia (High School) Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana (College/Postsecondary), Massachusetts, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi (College/Postsecondary), Montana, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York (High School), Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee (College/Postsecondary), Tennessee (High School), Texas (College/Postsecondary), Texas (High School), Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin (High School) and Wyoming.
To see photos from the 2025 SDA conference, visit: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjCqg2N.
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