Olivia Peterson made the drastic career shift from a librarian to taking classes inautomotive collision repairback in 2020. The change has brought her a promising new career, and it also allowed her to win the gold medal at the SkillsUSA Collision Repair Technology national competition in Atlanta.
Peterson was one of three CLC students to compete in the state competition. The winners from each state competed in the national competition in June.
在比赛中，学生必须展示他们在塑胶修补、金属修补、焊接、结构分析、笔试及模拟面试等方面的技巧。
Peterson liked competing, but she especially enjoyed meeting so many people with similar interests.
“At your own school, you sometimes forget there are other people doing the same thing,” she said. “Seeing other students like me taking their career seriously was a great experience. I made some good friends and connections out of it.”
在导师的强烈鼓励下参加比赛后，彼得森很高兴能享受成为冠军带来的职业福利。
“My name is now out there,” she said. “At the same time, it gave me a chance to evaluate my skillset. The competition tested typical things I do daily in my field.”
In a male-dominated field, Peterson is one of only a handful of women to ever medal in the Collision Repair Technology competition. She was happy to represent women in the trades when she stood on the podium.
“After two career changes, I found a job with purpose, helping promote women in trades,” she said.
彼得森在2020年加入CLC是作为学徒试点项目的一部分。为了这个项目，她每学期的前半段时间都在教室里全职上课，后半学期在一家车身修理厂当学徒。
She credits this experience for her being able to practice her skills that helped win the competition.
彼得森说:“我有一位了不起的导师，他帮助我成为了今天的我。“有了理论背景和实践经验，你就具备了从事任何职业所需的一切条件。”
Peterson在水晶湖的Gerber Collision & Glass实习，毕业前得到了一份全职工作，目前在那里工作。
Peterson’s instructor, Octavio Cavazos, was not surprised by her success at SkillsUSA after observing her performance in the classroom.
卡瓦佐斯说:“奥利维亚在实践和理论两方面都很出色。”“她很好奇，总是问很多问题。我们的项目设计并提供课程和实践技能，让我们的学生在SkillsUSA和他们的职业生涯中做到最好。”
About College of Lake County
College of Lake County is a comprehensive community college committed to equitable high-quality education, cultural enrichment and partnerships to advance the diverse communities it serves in northeastern Illinois. Offered at three campuses in Grayslake, Vernon Hills and Waukegan or online, college classes are affordable and accessible to help each student achieve academic, career and personal goals. More than 70,000 students graduated with degrees and certificates since the college opened in 1969. College of Lake County is the only higher-education institution ranked among the top 15 best places to work in Illinois by Forbes and is a national leader in many areas, including sustainability and conservation.