A team of 19 Apple Valley Unified School District students, along with one teacher, will be heading to Atlanta later this month to represent the district in the national SkillsUSA competition.

The students, who are part of the district’s Career Technical Education program, earned their spot in the nationals following a successful showing at the state-level competition held in Ontario in April, according to the district. The competition will take place June 24 through June 29.

“SkillsUSA is a national organization that provides students with the opportunity to showcase their skills and knowledge in various technical, trade, and leadership fields,” district representatives said in a written statement. “To qualify for the national competition, students had to receive first place in the state competition.”

In a district first, a teacher will also be competing after Granite Hills High School Medical Pathway teacher Jennifer Hunt was named CTE Advisor of the Year during the state contest.

Granite Hills High School Principal Adam Powell congratulated her for the achievement.

“Ms. Hunt is such a skilled teacher and although she hates the spotlight being on her instead of the students, being in the running for Advisor of the Year is well-deserved and we hope she enjoys the moment,” he said.

The 19 students will be competing in a variety of categories:

● Action Skills: Kaleb Manahl (Apple Valley High School)● CNC Programmer: Ethan Aschenbrenner (Apple Valley High School)● Customer Service: Grace Davis (Granite Hills High School)● Graphic Communications: Skye Becks (Apple Valley High School)● Job Skill Demo A: Brooklyn Hickey (Apple Valley High School)● Job Skill Demo Open: Mellonie Alexander Wade (Apple Valley High School)● Medical Assisting: Nayelli Vargas (Apple Valley High School)● Nurse Assisting: Taylor Fore (Apple Valley High School)● Practical Nursing: Kara Sanchez (Apple Valley High School)● Screen Printing Technology: Giovanni Guardado (Apple Valley High School)● Teamworks (1 team of 4 students): Alejandro Flores, Genaro Zapata, Omar Morales,Cody Pratt (Apple Valley High School)● Web Design (1 team of 2 students): Kaydence Lopez De Arriaga, Sierra Peck (AppleValley High School)● Welding Fabrication (1 team of 3 students): Travis Osburn, Jacob Lawler, JudahMorrison (Apple Valley High School)

The team has been “preparing rigorously” for the challenge, according to the district statement.

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Apple Valley High School Principal Brian Goodrow commended the students are their accomplishments and cheered them on as they head to the nationals.

“We are thrilled to see our students excel and earn the opportunity to compete on a national stage,” he said. “Their achievements are a testament to the quality of our CTE programs and the commitment of our instructors. We wish them the best of luck in Atlanta.”

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Apple Valley USD students qualify for national SkillsUSA competition