EAST BRUNSWICK – The SkillsUSA chapter on the East Brunswick campus of the Middlesex County Vocational and Technical Schools (MCVTS) has been named a National Model of Excellence, the highest honor awarded by the nonprofit organization, which promotes career and technical education.
“The Models of Excellence program represents the very best in chapter achievement and community involvement,” Timothy W. Lawrence, executive director of SkillsUSA, said in a prepared statement. “These students represent our future workforce and reflect the future of their communities. This is a tremendous honor for each school and validates these outstanding SkillsUSA programs as some of the best in the nation.”
The Model of Excellence designation is awarded to only 24 SkillsUSA chapters nationally. It recognizes personal, workplace and technical skills in chapter activities.
East Brunswick chapter vice president Lexie Enzana, a senior from Woodbridge, and treasurer Joseph Temenski, a junior from Sayreville, represented East Brunswick Tech at the National Leadership and Skills Conference in Louisville, Kentucky. The students were honored at a recognition dinner and competed for top honors during Models of Excellence interviews.
The East Brunswick chapter won 14 medals: 10 gold, three silver and a bronze.
“We’re extremely proud of their accomplishments and excited for their opportunity to compete at the national level,” East Brunswick Campus Principal Michael Cappiello said in the statement.
The East Brunswick Tech chapter was awarded Models of Excellence recognition for its “SkillsUSA Day,” a workshop planned and led by student officers to welcome new members into the organization and to teach them about the personal, technical, and workplace skills that make up the SkillsUSA framework. The student officers were responsible for creating objectives for the day and developing lessons and activities to accomplish their objectives, according to the statement.
Led by chapter advisors Sarah Rubin and Thomas Leibering, both math teachers, they learned the planning, organizational, and management skills necessary to lead an educational, productive, and engaging workshop. The members who attended began to learn the essential communication and teamwork skills that will help them to be successful students and employees, according to the statement.