SkillsUSA competition: A family feat for Ti sisters

TICONDEROGA | When Ti High Class of 2025 salutatorian Audrey Cook heads to New Hampshire's Ivy League Dartmouth College this fall to pursue her pre-med degree, she will have yet another accolade on her already lengthy list of accomplishments. Cook recently took home the title of first place winner in the national SkillsUSA championship through CV-TEC, competing in Medical Terminology. "I am really proud that I proved to myself that this was possible, there was a lot of doubt from myself along the way, especially when my schedule got very busy in the middle of the year," Cook admitted. "Everyone, not only in my community, but also at CV-TEC really supported me and actively wanted to see me work towards this goal. I was lucky to have so many people in my corner rooting for me." The SkillsUSA Championships event is held annually for students in middle school, high school or college/postsecondary programs as part of the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference. The non-profit is a partnership of students, instructors and industry acting as a talent pipeline for America's skilled workforce, committed to helping solve the skills gap. During her senior year at Ti High, Cook was enrolled at CV-TEC's New Visions Medical Careers Program, an academically rigorous one-year exploratory program for selected college-bound seniors planning to major in a field of study such as pre-med, chemistry, biology or other allied health fields. The academic curriculum is combined with practical, applied work experience as students observe health care professionals at one of the area's medical facilities. "From the beginning, the entire curriculum at New Visions helped me prepare for the test- I think I was inadvertently studying for it without even realizing it when I was first studying for my tests in class," admitted Cook. "Even the knowledge I gained from the beginning of the year was really helpful for when I got to the competition." Cook was already the New York State SkillsUSA Competition champion, of which 88 CTE schools and 3,020 students participated. At the national championship, the stakes were even higher, with around 50 competitors in the Medical Terminology category alone, and hundreds upon hundreds of competitors vying for the top spot in other categories. Cook comes from a family of bright minds and go-getters. In 2023, her sister (and Ti High Class of 2023 valedictorian) was awarded as a state champion and also attended the national competition, also competing in Medical Terminology and was awarded third place. One may expect a friendly-rivalry between two such accomplished young women, but the sisters are in fact each other's biggest fans and ardent cheerleaders, Cook never making a secret of how much she admires her eldest sibling. "At some point when we were younger, there was a friendly rivalry, but as we got older, she realized that I look up to her in a lot of the things I do and I think she wants to be a good role model for me, as well as being her own person," Cook revealed. "Emma was really supportive of me during prep for this and she told me a story that after she won her bronze, she told everyone that I would be the one to take gold when my turn came." It was also Emma who encouraged her younger sister to explore the New Visions program at CV-TEC, having been involved herself and now currently a medical student at Middlebury College. "I always liked science as a little kid, and of course I like music and art and history," Cook said. "I never really considered the fact that I could be a doctor. When my sister said I should try and see what the program was like, once I got there, I realized I was super interested; I feel like this is something I could wake up every single day doing without getting bored." According to Cook, the Medical Terminology test consisted of 200 questions with a time limit of two hours, with every body system from cardiac to the digestive track to mental health and the reproductive system included- if it was in the body, it was fair game. "You have to have a pretty broad range of knowledge," remarked Cook. Halfway through the 2024-2025 school year, when Cook began to really rev up her studying for the competition, she would find time in between what she calls "the cracks." "It was a bit unorthodox," she recalled. Preparation occurred during class, between classes, before and after drama club and, and all of the other extracurricular activities Cook involved herself in. "I want to give a big shout out to Dr. Todd Menia and Mrs. Nicole Santanello, they both really helped me when I was in Atlanta, and before that," Cook said. "I am so proud I got to represent all of the talented people in my New Visions class and at Ticonderoga. I'm honored I was able to represent the North Country on such a huge stage, and that we are constantly putting our great minds here in Ticonderoga."

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SkillsUSA competition: A family feat for Ti sisters

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