DuPage Teens Have Strong Showing at 2013 Illinois SkillsUSA
Fourteen high-school students representing Technology Center of DuPage (TCD) in Addison, Ill., placed among the top 10 in five contests—including a 1-2-3 sweep in Commercial Baking—at the 2013 Illinois SkillsUSA Leadership and Skills Conference. The annual state championships were held April 11-13 in Springfield with more than 1,300 participants competing in nearly 100 contests.
TCD’s culinary students had a particularly strong showing. Three seniors swept the top spots in the Commercial Baking division: Jonathan Bedell of Naperville (first place), Christine Hood of Darien (second), and Christopher Reusz of Downers Grove (third). In the same contest, two more TCD seniors—Briana Wills of Lombard and Alan Topalovic of Woodridge—placed fifth and eighth, respectively.
In the Culinary Arts division, three culinary students placed 2-3-4: senior Katherine Auerbach and junior Carl Sladkey (both from Naperville), and Amanda Mackie of Glendale Heights. For their achievement at SkillsUSA, these culinary students earned more than $60,000 in scholarships from Johnson & Wales University and Kendall College in Chicago.
As a state champion, Bedell is eligible to compete in Commercial Baking at the 49th National SkillsUSA championships, June 24-28 in Kansas City, Mo.
See www.tcdupage.org for photos and more information.
Technology Center of DuPage in metro Chicago is the career and technical education elective for juniors and seniors from 24 DuPage County and Lyons Township high schools. While preparing for college and a career, students earn high-school credit, college credit and available industry certifications and licenses.