Indian Welders finish Top Ten in the Nation

Chattooga High School’s State Championship Welding Fab finishes top ten in the nation, coming in seventh at Nationals, Individual Welder finishes 18th. 

Chattooga High School’s State Championship Welding Fab and State Champion Individual welder competed at the National SkillsUSA in Louisville, Ky., June 25-29, 2018, for the 54th annual National Leadership and Skills Conference (NLSC), a showcase of career and technical education students. More than 16,000 people including students, teachers and business partners participated in the week-long event.

Indian welder, Chase Dotson competed in the individual welding event while Welding/Fab team members Tufton Blanks, C.E. Massey, John Hunter and Sage Owings competed in the team event.

The Indian welding fab team claimed a 7th place finish as Dotson came in 18th in the individual championship.

“I am very proud of these young men and the hard work and effort they have put into this! They have made our CHS family very proud! This also proves what I have been saying for years, that Jeff Owings is one of the best welding instructors in the nation. His leadership and knowledge has made this possible for these young men,” Chattooga Principal Jeff Martin said. Owings has been the welding instructor at Chattooga for 25 years.

The SkillsUSA Championships showcased more than 6,000 outstanding career and technical education students –– all state contest winners, with Chattooga being two-time state champions–– competing hands-on in 100 different trade, technical and leadership fields. Students work against the clock and each other, proving their expertise in occupations. Contests are run with the help of industry, trade associations and labor organizations, and test competencies are set by industry. 

Chattooga High School also claimed college success at Nationals as Indian alumni, Taylor Eagle, representing GNTC claimed bronze in the Residential Systems Design and Installation electricial category. Eagle was the first competitor in this category for GNTC and the State of Georgia.

Taylor Eagle

CTAE at Chattooga 

Chattooga High School is focused on providing high school students with support in Architecture, Construction, Arts, Audio/Visual Technology, Communication, Human Services, Transportation, Distribution and Logistics, Health Science and Manufacturing. CTAE includes career pathways, college credit, work-based learning and student organizations.

“CTAE is the heart of our school; we serve CTAE in grades 6-12. We are not only concerned with if students graduate high school, but what they are going to be prepared for the day after [graduation],” CTAE Director, Dr. Emily Mobbs said.