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A recent Heritage High School graduate has brought the school's drafting program to the national stage.

Joshua Larson, who graduated in May, placed 39th in the technical drafting category at the annual SkillsUSA Championships this year. Students from all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the District of Columbia participated in his division.

Larson had to take a Skills- USA test about leadership, an American Design Drafting Association 150-question test and draft a car's water pump assembly. Competitors had six hours to complete the pump assembly using computer-aided design and drafting (CADD) systems, and judges changed specifications halfway through the competition.

Competitors were told the change was meant to simulate a real-world situation in which a client would want something new, Larson said. The plans also included an incorrect part, and competitors had to engineer a new solution.

Competitors had the opportunity to print a preview copy of their drawings and make corrections, Larson said. The second printed copy was graded by judges.

Larson received an estimated $30,000 in computer software and scholarships -- including a full ride to the Tennessee Technology Center -- through his SkillsUSA competitions, said former teacher Sam Warwick.

The pair also received free backpacks with built-in laptop computer cases, clothing, flash drives and various other pieces of merchandise at the Skills- USA Championships.

The pair was amazed by the national event at the Kansas City Convention Center, because the multi-million-dollar event occupies a space equivalent to 16 football fields. Nearly 1,500 judges and contest organizers from labor and management made the national event possible.

'Like the Olympics'

"I felt like a rock star walking in there," Larson said. "It was kind of like the Olympics. At the opening and closing ceremonies, people walked around with their state flags like the national flags at the Olympics."

"Plus, just making it there, you were one of the top 54 students in the country," Warwick said.

The week-long activities kept Larson busy from 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day with meetings, workshops and competitions, he said. "It was such a blur. We were so busy that it's tough to remember what I did."

Larson said he was energized by the experience. "Instead of being treated as a lower person, I was treated as an equal. It was a big responsibility, because I didn't want to fail. I knew if I failed then Tennessee failed."

Tennessee Tech bound

Larson plans to attend Tennessee Technology Center for the 18-month course to get industry certified. He then would like to pursue technical drafting at Pellissippi State Community College before transferring to Middle Tennessee State University's engineering program.

Larson hopes to get a technical drafting job at an engineering firm. "I love doing this, so I don't feel like I'm working. I can see immediately what I'm doing, and I really like math."

Warwick's students have made it to the state competition the last two years, and he's hopeful about another run this year. "I've got some students who could make the run," he said. "They just have to have the desire and talent.

"I hope we can go back. I think we have the potential to go back and win. If they do what they need to do, they will succeed. We've done harder things in the classroom than they had to do at nationals. It's all about putting it together at the right time," Warwick said.