To the editor:
My name is Dalton Scott. I’m a sophomore at Perry High School involved with the Industrial Tech program.
The Industrial Technology program has been very impactful on my life. I have been involved ever since I have been able to in sixth grade. It all started with the Technology Student Association (TSA) and learning the fundamentals of the shop. If you don’t know TSA, it is a program where kids come in once a week to work on their projects and compete with other students in order to improve.
Then in eighth grade I chose to be a part of a class in the shop once a day. Finishing eighth grade in TSA, I won third place in radio control (RC) at the state competition.
In high school I was introduced to SkillsUSA, which is similar to TSA but is just more career-based. There is only one competition and that is State. If you place first at State, you then go to Nationals and compete with people from different states.
I was overwhelmed with the possibilities the Industrial Tech program offers in high school. I competed in SkillsUSA my ninth grade year. I also competed in TSA once again, and I finished first in RC racing at State.
As I entered 10th grade, I decided to take a more advanced class in the shop during the school day called Research and Design (R&D). R&D is a class where we work together to build a car from scratch and try to make it get ultimate gas mileage.
Everyone has a role in that class. Some manage money, and some build the car itself. I dove headfirst into this class. It is a blast. Yes, it can be hard, but it’s worth it.
The Industrial Tech program has provided many opportunities.
Like everyone, I have my own personal hobby, and mine is racing RC cars. I have several cars, and I race them Friday nights. When I started this hobby, I was in eighth grade, the same time I became very involved with the Industrial Tech program.
As my hobby grew, I had educated people to help me with an understanding of RC cars. Most of those people are part of the Industrial Tech program. The shop doesn’t just help with things you will do in those specific programs. It also helps with the things you do outside of the school as a hobby.
If it wasn’t for the shop, RC racing wouldn’t be my hobby. You can see that it’s been a successful hobby because I’ve placed both times I’ve raced RC in TSA.
Please vote yes on Feb. 5 so the shop can have an effect on future students like it did with me. They will grow not only with knowledge of the shop but also get the experience of what we do. I have grown and created so many friends in this program also. It might even change their career choice.
So please vote Yes because if we have a bigger shop, it might leave a bigger impact on someone else.
Dalton Scott
Perry
