TSTC-Breckenridge student wins bronze medal at Skills USA national contest
Samantha Trevino, a student at Breckenridge’s Texas State Technical College campus, won a bronze medal at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference held at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, last month.
She competed in the Medical Assisting contest at the national conference after winning a gold medal in April at the 2025 SkillsUSA Texas State Leadership and Skills Conference in Corpus Christi.
SkillsUSA is a national nonprofit organization in the United States that partners with students, teachers, and industry with the goal of ensuring America has a skilled workforce. It primarily serves middle school, high school, and college/postsecondary students who are preparing for careers in trade, technical, and skilled service occupations, including health occupations.
Each year, the organization hosts local, state, and national competitions where students demonstrate their skills in hands-on, timed contests. Winners can advance to the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference held annually in Atlanta.
Trevino was one of eight Breckenridge students to compete in the state competition but was the only one to advance to the national event.
Before the state contest, the vocational nursing student said she chose Medical Assisting for a simple reason. “I have done a lot of that before, so I am more confident in that category,” she said.
Trevino was judged on skill, speed, use of correct safety measures, and ability to interact personally with a patient. The competition consists of various stations associated with skills that might be found in an ambulatory medical office or clinic.
Although Trevino was the only Breckenridge TSTC student to compete and medal at state, several other TSTC students from around the state won medals at the national competition:
- Jonathan Gann, Waco: gold, plumbing
- Jillian Contreras, Harlingen, silver, practical nursing
- Shawn Couet, Sweetwater, silver, electronics technology
- Zacarias Felipe, Waco, silver, carpentry
- Garrett Roeder, Williamson County, silver, CNC 5-axis milling programmer
- Joshua Stock, Waco, bronze, architectural drafting
- Victor Flores, Michael Lopez, Jackson Pace and Chad Robertson, Waco, bronze, TeamWorks
- Jorge Martinez and Autumn Sereno, Marshall, bronze, additive manufacturing
Cutline, top photo: Samantha Trevino, left, a student at Breckenridge’s Texas State Technical College campus, earned a bronze medal at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, last month. On the winners’ stage, she joined gold medalist Thea Comeaux, center, from South Louisiana Community College in Lafayette, Louisiana, and Kristin Loui, right, from Lanier Technical College in Silver Gainesville, Georgia. (Courtesy Photo)
