KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Northeast Wisconsin Technical College (NWTC) 2007 honors graduate Joel Tolly brought home a gold medal in Collision Repair Technology from the national SkillsUSA Championships held June 28-29 in Kansas City, Mo. Tolly graduated in May from the NWTC Auto Collision Repair and Refinishing Technician two-year, technical diploma program. This is the fourth consecutive year that an NWTC collision repair student has earned a national SkillsUSA medal, and it is also the fourth straight year that NWTC has swept all three top medals in Collision Repair Technology at the state level. “The SkillsUSA State and National Conference competitions are supported by the collision repair and refinish industry,” says Mark Blohm, NWTC auto collision instructor and SkillsUSA advisor. “The national competition committee, which plans the competition in Kansas City, consists of highly qualified individuals from across the country who have invested many years to this industry.” The Collision Repair Technology Contest involved repairing a metal fender using metal finishing techniques and plastic body filler, refinishing a panel (including blending) using new paint systems, structural damage analysis including vehicle body alignment, plastic identification and repair, GMA welding to the standards of the I-CAR Welding Qualification Test, estimation of a collision damaged vehicle, and an ASE written exam and interview. Contestants were judged on the overall appearance of the finished product, speed and proper safety practices. Tolly was one of five NWTC students who earned either a gold or silver medal at last month’s championships, and were among 5,000 students who competed in 87 hands-on skills and leadership contests. As a gold medal winner, Tolly may have the opportunity to represent the United States at the WorldSkills competition in Montreal in 2009. Industry representatives interested in sponsoring Tolly may call (920) 498-6849. The SkillsUSA Championships, held in conjunction with the 43rd Annual SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference, is the national-level competition for public high school and college/postsecondary technical students. Each SkillsUSA Championship contestant is a state-level medalist. For more information about the NWTC Auto Collision Repair and Refinish programs, contact Mark Blohm, NWTC program instructor and SkillsUSA advisor, (920) 498-6860.
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