Colquitt’s dual student wins state

Jeffrey Cheramie has become a star in SkillsUSA competitive events

MOULTRIE, GA-  Jeffrey Cheramie, a Colquitt County high school senior, has become a star in SkillsUSA competitive events. Jeffrey is a dual enrollment student at Southern Regional Technical College (SRTC) in the electrical systems technology program. He began the program as a high school sophomore in the fall of 2019. He enrolled in the program partly because he was influenced by watching his father do electrical work around their home. He stated, “It looked interesting and challenging.”

Jeffrey has trained for and competed in SkillsUSA competitions as part of the program. In 2020, he won the regional competition and was headed to state when the COVID-19 pandemic forced its cancellation. This year he decided to give the competition a try again. Locally, he placed 2nd in Electrical Wiring at the Skills Challenge in November. Jeffrey then competed in SkillsUSA Regions in Construction Electrical Wiring, where he placed 1st and moved on to the SkillsUSA State Leadership Conference and Competition held in Atlanta, GA. Jeffrey competed against all the other region champions in Construction Electrical Wiring at state. Jeffrey again placed 1st and brought home the gold for Colquitt County. When asked why he enjoyed competing, Jeffrey shared, “I love challenging myself and overcoming obstacles. I also like meeting new people, and I know that SkillsUSA will open opportunities for me to get scholarships and job offers.”

“Jeffrey has worked hard to get to this point,” stated SRTC instructor Stephen Mathis. “He spends afternoons and evenings practicing for the competitions. He will represent CCHS and SRTC well at nationals.”  Jeffrey and his instructor will attend the national competition in June held for the first time at the World Congress Center in Atlanta. He will compete against all the other SkillsUSA State Champions throughout the United States.

Before graduating high school, Jeffrey will be preparing for the national competition with SkillsUSA and have completed his second college certificate in the electrical program with SRTC. He has already completed a Residential Wiring Technical Certificate of Credit and will have his Commercial Wiring Technical Certificate of Credit in May. These certificates will help him gain employment upon graduating high school and count as credits toward an associate degree in Electrical Systems Technology.