BPCC wins 18 gold medals at SkillsUSA; Gold winners go to nationals

SHREVEPORT, La. (KSLA) - BPCC teams from the Ark-La-Tex will be showing off their skills in national competitions for SkillsUSA this summer.

On April 5, the postsecondary competition of SkillsUSA was held in Alexandria, Louisiana.

The Bossier Parish Community College (BPCC) won several medals including gold in the SkillsUSA Louisiana Postsecondary competition at the state level. The gold-winning teams will be going to Atlanta, Georgia this summer to represent Louisiana in the SkillsUSA national competition.

“I’m incredibly proud of the students I lead and the last couple of days I spent with them has shown me just how capable they are! I expect nothing less than greatness from them at this year’s national stage,” says Alex Richardson, the official advisor for the BPCC Promotional Bulletin Board team.

Dr. June Scheider, the associate professor and engineering program director, is eager to return to the national competition with more of her students this summer. Joining her will be Kevin Aguilar, Rezq Alawdi, and Hoang Le for engineering and technology design, as well as Ryan Staggs for related technical math and Eliot Power for Principles of Engineering.

“I am extremely proud of my students,” Dr. Schneider said. “They work diligently and collaboratively to design their projects, honing their engineering skills and pitching their designs to a panel of judges. It will be exciting to see our students shine once again at the national competition while also networking with business and industry partners.”

Melanie Lea, who is a BPCC faculty member since 2009, has been selected to serve on the SkillsUSA National Education Team for the audio/radio competition category.

“I’m honored to represent BPCC on the national level,” Lea said. “Receiving this appointment creates the opportunity to not only represent the quality instruction and professional development provided by our college but for our entire Louisiana Community and Technical College System.”

18 gold medals, 7 silver, and 10 bronze were won.