A Patriot is number one in the nation. Caleb Dykes, a rising junior at Sandy Creek High, is a gold medal winner, taking 1st place in Pin Design at the 58th annual SkillsUSA National Leadership & Skills Conference (NLSC).

Dykes advanced to the national competition after winning at the region and state levels. His graphic design, design display, and presentation were judged according to industry standards. His design was also produced as the official trading pin for SkillsUSA Georgia.

In addition, Sandy Creek’s SkillsUSA Chapter was recognized as a National Gold Chapter of Distinction for the eighth consecutive year. The chapter was also represented by Jawanza Blue and Sidney Patterson, who competed in 3D Animation & Visualization after winning at the state level.

SkillsUSA NLSC had 5,200 competitors in 108 competitions held in the Georgia World Congress Center with a contest area of more than 1.7 million square feet (31 football fields) and costing more than $36 million dollars, including in-kind services and donations.

Sandy Creek SkillsUSA was able to compete with the help of sponsorships from the Printing & Imaging Association of Georgia (PIAG), Construction Ready, and the Georgia Department of Education.

SkillsUSA is a national career and technology student organization with more than 330,000 members. It focuses on helping students in Career & Technology Education develop personal, workplace, and technical skills through a full range of programs, training, and competition.