TEMPLE, Texas — Three students from Temple High School’s Career and Technical Education program won top spots at the Top Tech Challenge this January, taking home both trophies and scholarship money.
The Challenge, hosted by Universal Technical Institute of Austin, featured students competing in automotive and welding categories.
Zakary Jarosek, a senior at Temple High, won first place overall in the welding competition with a point total of 108, Temple ISD said in a release. To win the top spot, Jarosek reportedly did a horizontal weld using three beads and a 3F vertical weld.
TISD said Jarosek hopes to go on to a career as an underwater welder one day, and learned a little more about himself at the competition.
“It felt great to go compete against people from across the state and it helped me gain some confidence in myself,” Jarosek said. “I underestimate myself a lot of times, but competing showed me that I can do this and performing well can also help with getting a job down the road. This really shows that I can do things I sometimes think I can’t do.”
For his first place victory, Jarosek won $65,000 in scholarship money and a Snap-On welding helmet valued at $3,000, according to TISD.
Jarosek’s welding instructor and Temple High School CTE instructor Jake Lingo said he can see the benefits from the Challenge not just for Jarosek, but for the program as a whole.
“It means a lot for our program, and it shows we are doing things right and turning out students that can compete and win,” said Lingo. “That means that they can go out into life and win there, as well. Zakary comes in and works every day, so he has put in the work. The opportunity to go out and win scholarships and help pay for that experience and education down the road is a great incentive for these students.”
Also earning top placements were juniors Chester Williams and Tyler Gillis, who finished in second place as a two-person team in the team automotive competition. Williams and Gillies competed against 40 other two-person teams to finish with a 210-point total, said TISD.
Williams also won an individual second place title among more than 80 competitors, according to the district.
Automotive tech students competed in both written tests and hands-on competitions like parts identification, brake problems, electrical problems and more, according to TISD. Williams said he hopes to be a diesel mechanic one day, and was grateful for the practical experience.
“I felt humbled and grateful that we were able to take what our instructor had taught us and put it to use,” Williams said. “Going through this competition can help me with opportunities to get jobs. I am able to build my resume, learn how to network and build connections. It is going to help me going forward and I have more confidence in myself. It will also help lessen the financial worries. I hope other students see this and it sparks something in them. It is an honor to be a student here and have access to these facilities and tools, it goes beyond the wood and the words of the trophy.”
“I was really excited because our goal going in was to finish top three and we did that,” Gillis added. “I’m not sure if I will go into veterinary work or automotive, but it is a great feeling to be able to use what we have been learning.”
TISD said Williams and Gillis earned $7,500 in tuition grants to any Universal Technical Institute (UTI) campus with their second-place finish. They also won Temple High School’s automotive technology program a Snap-On toolbox and nearly $3,500 worth of Snap-On tools.
Representatives from UTI-Austin visited Temple High School on Feb. 4 to present the toolbox, the district said.
Both Williams and Gillies credit their auto tech instructor Brad Hamrick for preparing them for the competition.
“It feels really good to see them perform so well against so many other schools,” Hamrick said. “They were literally tested on everything they would use for certification, so it was an actual real-world experience. I hope that it will grow from here and motivate others to want to compete.”
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