News

SkillsUSA Honors Roy Shafer with National Award
Outstanding educator recognized for student development and program leadership

Leesburg, Va. - A Kansas SkillsUSA advisor and automotive service technology instructor has won a prestigious Outstanding Career and Technical Educator award for participation in SkillsUSA and career and technical education. The award will be presented to Roy Shafer during the SkillsUSA National Leadership & Skills Conference on June 21 in Atlanta, Ga.  
One of SkillsUSA’s highest recognitions, the Outstanding Educator of the Year, is awarded to outstanding individuals who guide SkillsUSA members to become leaders in their chosen fields. Not awarded regularly, it is given only when the SkillsUSA Board of Directors wants to honor an exceptional educator for their service and dedication to career and technical education and SkillsUSA.
Shafer has dedicated 23 years to Coffeyville Community College (CCC). He engages with his students and with business industry partners through field trips, workshops, conferences and job internships. Graduating as a student from CCC, he has educated countless students there in his years of teaching. Shafer was a member of SkillsUSA when it was known as VICA and has maintained his membership since.
Recognized as Outstanding Advisor for Kansas in 2019, he has also served SkillsUSA Kansas as Auto Service Technology Technical Committee co-chair for five years and as Maintenance Light Repair Technical Committee co-chair for two years. He served on the Kansas Board of Directors for eight years, including two terms as President, and will soon be installed for a third term. In his community, Shafer serves as an Elder in the Wayside Christian Church, on the board of directors for the Caney Historical Society and as a leader at the local, district and council levels with the Boy Scouts of America for more than 35 years.
“Shafer is a SkillsUSA champion with a true passion for helping youth develop the knowledge and skills that empower every student to achieve career success,” said SkillsUSA Executive Director Chelle Travis. “His passion and dedication to SkillsUSA and career and technical education are inspiring.”

Please contact Jane Short at JShort@skillsusa.org if you need more information or if you would like photos or contact information for the honoree.

About SkillsUSA
SkillsUSA is America’s proud champion of the skilled trades. It’s a student-led partnership of
education and industry that’s building the skilled workforce our nation depends on with graduates who are career ready, day one. Representing nearly 380,000 career and technical education students and teachers, SkillsUSA chapters thrive in middle schools, high schools and college/postsecondary institutions nationwide. SkillsUSA’s mission empowers students to become skilled professionals, career-ready leaders and responsible community members. That mission is accomplished through the SkillsUSA Framework of Personal Skills, Workplace Skills and Technical Skills Grounded in Academics, which is integrated into classroom curriculum. Through Framework instruction, students develop the character-shaping leadership skills - teamwork, communication, professionalism and more - that successful careers and lives demand. At the same time, students hone their high-level technical skills against current industry standards in more than 130 skilled trade areas, from 3-D Animation to Welding. The result? Focused, confident and highly skilled graduates who are ready to work, ready to lead and ready to make a difference in our schools, workplaces and communities. A vital solution to the skills gap, where more in-demand skilled trades positions are available than qualified professionals to fill them, SkillsUSA has served over 14 million difference-making members since 1965. To learn more, visit www.skillsusa.org .

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Coffeyville Community College is a comprehensive two-year institution of post-secondary learning. The College offers 19 academic programs, 15 technical programs, and 14 certificate programs. Students can graduate from college with one of five Associate Degree options.