About SkillsUSA

SkillsUSA is a partnership of students, teachers, and industry working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce. As a nonprofit national education association, SkillsUSA serves middle-school, high-school, and college/postsecondary students preparing for careers in trade, technical, and skilled service occupations. SkillsUSA is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Labor as a successful model of employer-driven youth development training.

SkillsUSA serves more than 331,000  students and instructors annually. This includes 19,019 instructors who join as professional members. Including alumni, SkillsUSA membership totals over 393,000. SkillsUSA has served nearly 14 million annual members cumulatively since 1965 and is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Labor as a successful model of employer-driven workforce development.

• Mission: SkillsUSA is America’s proud champion of the skilled trades. Our mission is to empower students to become skilled professionals, career-ready leaders, and responsible community members.
  
  
• Vision: SkillsUSA’s vision is to produce the most highly skilled workforce in the world, providing every member the opportunity for career success.
  
  
• Values: The following values inform and inspire our work and interactions.
  
  • Integrity: We are consistent and authentic in word and action to each other, our members, and the communities we serve.
  • Respect: Respect is foundational. Our self-awareness precedes our ability to connect with each other and our members while mutually valuing our unique experiences.
  • Responsibility: We are accountable to the whole of our organization, from internal staff to our diverse group of stakeholders. Through listening, learning
    and acting, we engage in our shared commitment to realizing a collective vision.
  • Community: We value and belong to a diverse community. We strive to do our best in service through continuous reflection and growth.
  • Service: SkillsUSA acts through the willing service of staff and committed volunteers to empower its members and their communities to reach their
    highest potential.
    
    
• Impact: A 2023 report (condensed report) from the Student Research Foundation shows that SkillsUSA members consistently outperform their peers not enrolled in a career and technical student organization (CTSO) in seven essential areas:
  1. Earning a license or certification related to their field of study
  2. Meeting potential employers
  3. Being excited about their chosen career
  4. Gaining work experience as a student
  5. Understanding the work environment
  6. Being excited about school
  7. Connecting school to the real world
     
     
• The SKillsUSA Framework
  
  
• The SkillsUSA Program of Work
  
  
• SkillsUSA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement: In 2022, SkillsUSA created the following Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Statement to help govern our work: “SkillsUSA strives to ensure inclusive participation in all of our programs, partnerships and employment opportunities. In SkillsUSA, diversity encompasses differences in race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, gender transition status, national origin, age, physical and mental ability, thinking styles, experience, and education. We strive to make all members, partners, and employees feel welcomed and valued in the SkillsUSA family. SkillsUSA believes in treating all people with respect and dignity. We want SkillsUSA to be regarded as a membership organization of choice that encourages all individuals to be involved.”