{"id":62116,"date":"2019-03-03T20:58:18","date_gmt":"2019-03-04T03:58:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/shop-class-stars-strut-their-stuff-at-regional-competition\/"},"modified":"2019-03-04T03:58:18","modified_gmt":"2019-03-04T03:58:18","slug":"shop-class-stars-strut-their-stuff-at-regional-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/shop-class-stars-strut-their-stuff-at-regional-competition\/","title":{"rendered":"Shop class stars strut their stuff at regional competition"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Seth
Seth Thornburg, 17, a senior at Durango High School, builds a frame for a small building Thursday during the 2019 SkillsUSA Colorado Region 8 Championships held in the Exhibit Hall at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Eighty-six students from five area school districts competed in various skills. Seth is the son of Mike and Debby Thornburg.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Seth Thornburg, 17, a senior at Durango High School, is pretty handy with a miter saw and a router \u2013 skills enhanced in carpentry and woodworking classes.<\/p>\n

Seth and 85 other students from five different Southwest Colorado school districts got to show off their skills Thursday competing in the 2019 SkillsUSA Region 8 Championships at the La Plata County Fairgrounds.<\/p>\n

SkillsUSA<\/a> is a partnership of students, teachers and industry representatives seeking to build career and technical skills for students looking to enter the construction and trades industry and other technical careers. More than 335,000 students participate in SkillsUSA programs across the country.<\/p>\n

\"Students
Students from five different school districts competed Thursday at the 2019 SkillsUSA Colorado Region 8 Championships held in the Exhibit Hall at the La Plata County Fairgrounds.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The top finishers in 11 different competitions \u2013 ranging from woodworking and welding to crime-scene investigation and job-interviewing skills \u2013 will get to move on and compete in the SkillsUSA Colorado State Leadership and Skills Conference<\/a> in Colorado Springs in April.<\/p>\n

Shaun Smith, career and technical education department coordinator and woodshop teacher at DHS<\/a>, said, \u201cThis is a nice showcase presentation. It brings the students and industry together under one roof. The kids look forward to it all year.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 323,000 jobs were open nationwide for skilled workers in the construction industry in October 2018, the latest month for which numbers were available.<\/p>\n

Smith said his students know there is a shortage of skilled workers in construction and building trades. He said, \u201cThey hear it from us, but it really makes more of an impact for them at an event like this, where they hear it from people in the industry.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Zach
Zach Heide, 15, from Durango High School, demonstrates his skills welding aluminum Thursday during the 2019 SkillsUSA Colorado Region 8 Championships held in the Exhibit Hall at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Eighty-six students from five area schools competed in various skills. Zach is the son of Carl and Marilyn Heide.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Besides skilled workers in the baby boom generation retiring, Smith said, career and technical education was often neglected in public schools in the 1980s, and only in the past decade have career and technical programs seen a resurgence in interest at public schools.<\/p>\n

Smith works closely with the Home Builders Association of Southwest Colorado not only to offer internships and apprenticeships but to provide mentors and to develop relevant curriculum to build students\u2019 skills in areas where builders see shortages.<\/p>\n

Ryan Voegeli, preconstruction manager for Kogan Builders<\/a> in Durango, said, \u201cWe see a shortage of qualified workers across the whole gamut, from general labor to qualified carpenters, plumbers, electricians to mechanical.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Kody
Kody Hoffman, 15, from Bayfield High School, builds a small table Thursday during the 2019 SkillsUSA Colorado Region 8 Championships held in the Exhibit Hall at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Eighty-six students from five area school districts competed in various skills. Kody is the son of Jaimie and Ryan Hoffman.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The Home Builders Association of Southwest Colorado<\/a>, he said, will award 10 scholarships, each worth $2,000, this year to area students interested in attending college or vocational schools in subjects relevant to the construction trades industry.<\/p>\n

Voegeli also said the association is working with schools to offer internships and trade certifications in areas such as tools, construction materials, math, green building and employability.<\/p>\n

Katie Middleton, executive officer of the Home Builders Association of Southwest Colorado, said, \u201cIt\u2019s all about getting industry together with the kids so they are job-ready from day one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Timothy
Timothy Hittle, 14, a Pagosa Springs High School student, works on a frame for a small building Thursday during the 2019 SkillsUSA Colorado Region 8 Championships held in the Exhibit Hall at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Eighty-six students from five area school districts competed in various skills. Timothy is the son of Eric and Kendra Hittle.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Seth, whose parents are Mike and Debby Thornburg, earned an internship after the SkillsUSA 2018 competition from Veritas Fine Homes<\/a>. Thornburg won the Region 8 carpentry competition in 2018 and finished second in the state competition.<\/p>\n

During his internship, Thornburg said his main job was cleaning job sites, but it allowed him to learn about all the various building stages needed to complete a home. By the end of his internship, he was working on a framing crew.<\/p>\n

\u201cI got to see how things were done. I learned a lot,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Apparently so. Seth already has a job offer from Veritas when he graduates this year.<\/p>\n

parmijo@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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