Rising Henderson County High School senior Carter Siewert had some heavy lifting to do when he competed in the National Skills USA Competition last month in Atlanta.
He and teammate Brett Haley won a state championship in March, but Brett was unable to go to the nationals at Georgia World Congress Center because of a conflict with the Governor’s Scholars Program.
And when a substitute had a medical issue, it was clear that Carter would have to bring his “A” game.
He would have to go it alone.
When it was all over, Carter was on the Skills USA Competition’s podium as the bronze medalist, placing third in the national finals of Interactive Application and Video Game Development. He was the only competitor from Kentucky to reach the podium in any event.
“It was very nerve-wracking at first,” said the son of Hallie and Travis Siewert, but once he got his science-fair style presentation set up and running and was able to go around the floor to look at other competitors’ projects things got calmer.
It would be nerve-wracking for anyone. The overall event featured more than 6,500 state champions from across the United States competing head-to-head in 114 skill and leadership competition categories. Carter was competing against 49 state champions in his category.
The competition covered more than 1.79 million square feet of floor space, the equivalent of 31 football fields, which is overwhelming in itself.
The SkillsUSA Championships is the national culmination of a year-long process that begins in local SkillsUSA chapters. Local winners advance to district or regional competitions, testing their skills against competitors from other schools. Those winners advance to state competitions each spring, and state gold medalists earn the right to compete nationally at the SkillsUSA Championships each June.
Along with gold, silver and bronze medallions, competitors may also earn scholarships, tools of the trade and even job offers right off the competition floor.
The video game for the national competition was created in Henderson County High School technology teacher Dalton Inge’s Interactive Media and Game Development class and was called “Murder Mansion.” To solve a murder mystery, gamers must locate three pieces of evidence in a mansion and then manage to escape.
Inge said the class assignment stood out from the beginning.
From there the teammates worked on turning it into a competition presentation, Inge explained, just like they were pitching it to a gaming studio.
They had to make a trailer, a video discussion about their process and be prepared for a 15-minute interview with the judges.
At the state competition “the judges went way past their time,” Inge said, and both Carter and Brett left the room with business cards and conversations about future internships.
Inge said the national competition was more of a booth set up that added marketing materials and involved pitching the game to two different groups of judges, which included some of the industry’s leading game engineers.
“I was stoked,” said Inge, a fifth-year teacher who knows what it was like because he had competed at Skills USA many times. “He had a lot stacked against him to (get to the) podium. To win third place without a partner was amazing.”
The instructor said that it’s no real secret that the game design industry is hard to get into, so getting that level of recognition on a national stage is huge.
“It’s a good showing these kids that they can go out there and get into this industry,” he added, noting that being able to turn a good idea into a mobile game for a phone, polish it, publish it and monetize it “looks good on a resume.”
Carter said he’s definitely planning to compete again in his senior year, but per competition rules he needs to wait until school starts to begin developing an idea.
Inge, who has taught Carter for three years and was already noticing some aptitude in their first class together, is waiting.
A project-based course for seniors can be centered around “one big project.” With that kind of time to work, Inge said, “he’s fired up and ready to win first place.
***
The HCHS Quiz Bowl team also placed sixth in the national at Skills USA. Team members were Andrew Harrison, Ava Zigler, Kyen Jiang, Lydia Burnette and Ramsey Watson. The team was the only other HCHS entry at nationals.
Other results from state competition:
First, Tactical Response: Ethan Peckenpaugh, Jasmin Townsend, Myles Ramirez, Andrew Hendricks
First, Information Technology Services: Andrew Harrison
Second, Digital Cinema Production: Addison Kahre, Nazaria Mason
Third, Extemporaneous Speaking: Alexis Francke
Third, Technical Math: Alexis Francke
Third, Welding Fabrication: Lydia Burnette, Owen Hibbs, Quinn Butler
Skills USA Statesman Award winners: Kennedi Carter, Sydney Siebe, Ava Zigler, Jermaine Poynter