TSTC-Breckenridge student, four others to represent West Texas at SkillsUSA national conference
When college students begin competing at the 2024 SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference on Monday, June 24, one of the competitors will be a student from Texas State Technical College’s Breckenridge campus.
Kimberly Lozano-Ryman, a Vocational Nursing student from Anson who attends classes in Breckenridge, will be joined by four other TSTC-West Texas students representing TSTC’s Breckenridge, Abilene and Sweetwater locations. They will be in Atlanta, Georgia, along with fellow state gold medalists, for the weeklong event, which runs through Friday, June 28. Competing will be Lozano-Ryman, Aulton Lira of Ozona, Toby Styron of Roscoe, Dave Aman of Abilene and Hunter Spohn of Eula.
Lozano-Ryman will compete in the Medical Assisting event. She will be judged on her skills, speed, use of correct safety measures and the ability to interact personally with patients.
In April, Lozano-Ryman took the top prize in Medical Assisting at the SkillsUSA Texas Postsecondary State Leadership and Skills Conference in Houston. She said SkillsUSA showed her the importance of preparation. “My instructor gave me the material on what I would expect to see when competing,” she said. “I also had years of experience working as a medical assistant, so it just came naturally.”
Lozano-Ryman said she will lean on her experience as a medical assistant and what she has learned at TSTC at the national conference.
SkillsUSA is a professional organization focused on employability, leadership and technical skills that can help college students pursue successful careers and be part of a skilled workforce.
“I am looking forward to competing and representing not only Texas, but TSTC,” said Aulton Lira, a Wind Energy Technology student who will compete in Electronics Technology.
During the competition, Lira, of Ozona, will have different sections to complete, according to the SkillsUSA website. The sections include a written exam, soldering, breadboarding and troubleshooting.
Toby Styron, an Electromechanical Technology student from Roscoe and a Facilithon competitor, is representing more than TSTC. “I am also looking forward to representing my family, who will be supporting me back home,” he said.
Both students, who will represent the Sweetwater location, have been working with instructors to prepare for the national event.
“The instructors have been creating different scenarios I could see at nationals,” Styron said.
According to the SkillsUSA website, Facilithon assesses the competitor’s problem-solving skills, ability to quickly execute the best response to challenges, ability to accurately digest complex situations, and convey related solutions to the field of facility management.
The team of Dave Aman of Abilene and Hunter Spohn of Eula will compete in Emergency Medical Technician (EMT). Spohn won the event at the state level with classmate Joshua Rains. Rains was unable to participate in the national competition, so Aman stepped in. Aman is currently a Paramedic student and Spohn is an Emergency Medical Technician student at TSTC’s Abilene location.
“We had to get our schedules lined up so we could practice for the competition,” Aman said.
Spohn said winning at the state level will prepare him for the next stage.
“There were so many people with so much more experience than me at state,” he said. “That helped me with my confidence so that I will be able to compete at the national event.”
The EMT event will simulate situations encountered by emergency medical professionals that include either a medical or trauma scenario. Each scenario will require the use of critical thinking skills, communication, and demonstration of professionalism.
Cutline, top photo: TSTC-Breckenridge Vocational Nursing student Kimberly Lozano-Ryman, center, will compete in the 2024 SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference on Monday, June 24. She is pictured here with fellow students who received medals at the SkillsUSA Texas Postsecondary State Leadership and Skills Conference in Houston in April. From left, are Jamila Skrhak, who won a bronze medal in Nursing Assisting; Lozano-Ryman, who won a gold medal in Medical Assisting; and Janice Freed, who won a silver medal in First Aid-CPR. (Courtesy Photo)
(Information provided by TSTC)