SkillsUSA Adds A/V Technology
Jun 1, 2001 12:00 PM
ICIA has announced its involvement with the SkillsUSA Championships. Competitions among high school and community college students from all over the country test the students’ skills. In 2001, more than 4000 students will compete in 72 job skill events including for the first time a demonstration contest based on A/V installation job skills. SkillsUSA provides occupational training for virtually every occupation offered.
Ten A/V teams will participate in this year’s national competition. Each team includes three students and one advisor. ICIA is hosting the advisors at its Fairfax, Virginia, training center. Another team will attend INFOCOMM International in Las Vegas, June 13-15, 2001. This team will demonstrate its skills in mock competitions throughout the show, with an ICIA staff member on hand to answer questions for attendees.
The Championships, to be held June 28, 2001, in Kansas City, Missouri, consists of a written test of general A/V knowledge and a full-day practical exam in which the students assemble a typical training room A/V system. This is a multimillion-dollar event occupying a space equivalent to eight football fields. Individual ICIA members, selected for their involvement in the industry and their various specialties, judge the practical exam. The volunteer judges are Timothy Cape, CTS, a design consultant for Waveguide Consulting; Nick Efstratiou, CTS-I, a systems integrator at Ace Audio Visual Inc.; and Gordon Moore, CTS-D, an audio manufacturer for Lectrosonics Inc.
ICIA has committed to this initiative by dedicating staff members to the program, recruiting schools and mentors, and providing a grant of $20,000 to support the teams’ travel and accommodations at the Championships in Kansas City.
“This is one of many initiatives that ICIA and ECF are operating to develop a well-educated workforce for our industry,” said Randal Lemke, Ph.D., executive director of ICIA. “We want to work with members to foster the creation of A/V technical teams by sponsoring small groups of students in their areas. These sponsorships take a little effort and equipment, but the returns are tremendous when viewed as an investment in future qualified A/V workers.”
The competition takes place first at the state level, toward the end of the school year. Candidate teams are then selected to compete in the national event in June. A technical committee comprised of ICIA members develops the scenario for the A/V portion of the testing. Scott Wills oversees this perennial committee made up of Barry Halligan, CTS, MCSi-Atlanta; Fred Dixon, CTS, Dixon Media Systems and Designs Inc.; Howard Kaufman, Lectrosonics Inc.; Kim Milliken, Da-Lite Screen Co. Inc.; Mikhail Gershfeld, Altinex Inc.; and Joel Rollins, CTS-R, Riverview Systems Group Inc.
Manufacturer members of the association have donated all of the equipment. Contributing member companies include Altinex, Biamp Systems, Da-Lite Screen, Extron Electronics, Middle Atlantic Products, Panja, Sharp, Atlas Sound, Beyerdynamic and West Penn Wire/CDT.
For more information on ICIA’s involvement with Skills USA or how an organization can get involved as a mentor or sponsor, please contact Larry Smith, director of workforce development, at [email protected] or call 800/659-7469.
