TSTC in Waco earns gold medals at Texas SkillsUSA Postsecondary Conference

(WACO, Texas) – Cicilia Bunting has felt this feeling before.

Bunting, a Culinary Arts student at Texas State Technical College, won first place for the second consecutive year in Commercial Baking at the SkillsUSA Texas Postsecondary State Leadership and Skills Conference held in mid-April in Waco.

“I know what to expect and what the judges are looking for,” the La Porte resident said.

Texas State Technical College in Waco won 30 gold medals, 19 silver medals and 13 bronze medals at the state competition. Eighteen two-year institutions took part in this year’s state conference.

Marc Garcia of Waco participated for the first time in SkillsUSA and placed first in Automotive Refinishing. For the state contest he matched colors, blended a panel and demonstrated other skills.

“It feels great,” Garcia said. “I will have instructors helping me out. I want to improve on my scores.”

Faustino Laessig of Lometa placed first in Collision Repair Technology. He demonstrated his knowledge in analyzing vehicles, metal repair and welding.

“I was stunned when I won,” Laessig said. “It feels great knowing I can get something done. I will put in more lab hours. It will help me become a better technician.”

TSTC’s gold medalists are eligible to compete at this year’s SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference in late June in Louisville, Kentucky.

Other TSTC in Waco gold medalists are:

3-D Visualization and Animation: Dylan Borg and Vicky Lackey

Additive Manufacturing: Brandon Lund and Cody White

Advertising Design: Joe Quintero

Cabinetmaking: Timothy Watkins

Carpentry: Cody Scheffe

Collision Damage Appraisal and Total Loss Evaluation: Jannifer Stimmel

Computer Programming: Dante Hart

Electrical Construction Wiring: Cordell Argumaniz

Graphic Communications: Eddie King

Information Technology Services: Erik Syck

Internet of Things: Rickie Hartfield

Internetworking: Alberto Moreno

Pin Design – State: Ana Alvarez

Plumbing: Rourke Scott

TeamWorks: Jacob Dawson, Antonio Hernandez, Leonardo Mata and Andres Zapata

T-Shirt Design – State: Christina Pace

Web Design: Sara Steward and Garrett Bentley

Welding: Brenden Paradis

Welding Fabrication: Brady Carpenter, Dalton Gabel and Cash Latta

For more information on SkillsUSA, go to skillsusa.org.

For more information on Texas State Technical College, go to www.tstc.edu.