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Teen Woodworkers Battle it Out for International Title

Tom McKenna, senior editor

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The winning nightstand on display following the competition.

Kaydee Walters hard at work, cutting dovetails for her nightstand's drawer.

Kaydee Walters' nighstand plan is covered with parts, including an assembled face frame - midway through the competition.

Daniel Berrios, hard at work on the nightstand, mid-competition.

L-R: Scott Phillips, host of WGBU TV's The American Woodshop, announces the winner as Kaydee Walters and Daniel Berrios look on.

The winning nightstand on display following the competition.

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During AWFS this year, two high school woodworkers battled for the title of SkillsUSA champion. At stake was a trip to Leipzig, Germany, to compete in the world skills championship.

Both competitors—Daniel Berrios, of Bethlehem Vo-Tech School in Bethlehem, PA, and Kaydee Walters, of Tooele High School in Tooele, UT—are part of the SkillsUSA program, whose mission is to help students in technical schools develop leadership skills and to learn about teamwork in an attempt to help them be successful in their post-high school jobs.

This woodworking competition had Daniel, the 2010 SkillsUSA gold medalist, and Kaydee, the 2011 champ, going head-to-head building the same nightstand. The piece had to be finished by the end of the week, with critical timelines met. Each step was judged in two basic categories: subjective and objective. Objective criteria included accuracy of dimensions and conformity to the overall plan. Subjective criteria were based on three judges' opinions of items such as joinery and surface qualities.

Both kids worked hard, kicking up sawdust and sweat while under the watchful eyes of passersby. By Saturday morning, judges had made their selection, and the winner was Daniel Berrios.

For more information about the program, visit www.skillsusa.org.

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Comments (1)

riden writes: I have to ask. I am Canadian, one of my students won the provincial Skills competition (mechanics), and earned the right to compete nationally and perhaps after that internationally.

He didn't go because none of his trip was covered, it would have cost this kid at least likely $2000 to compete. I couldn't believe it, he was still a teen, where could he get that money. What a farce.

Is the US version the same?
Posted: 7:04 pm on August 2nd

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