Ryan Pare, a recent graduate of Lewiston High School, was awarded the Bronze medal in the Medical Math competition at the annual National Leadership and Skills Conference and SkillsUSA Championships. Ryan has participated in the state level competition and was the gold medalist in both 2010 and 2011, earning a trip to the national conference both years.

He represents the Lewiston Regional Technical Center, and his advisor is Pamela Abzan. Ryan will be going to the University of Maine at Farmington this fall and will be majoring in Mathematics. He is the son of Scott and Cindy Pare of Lewiston.

The SkillsUSA Championships were held at H. Roe Bartle Hall, Municipal Auditorium and American Royal in Kansas City, Missouri on June 23. The championships are considered the largest single day of corporate volunteerism in America and valued at $35 million in industry support of donated time, equipment, cash and material. All contests are run by and judged by industry using industry standards for employment. Over 1,000 industry judges participated this year.

All winners receive medallions and frequently receive tools of their trade and/or scholarships to further their careers and education. The SkillsUSA Championships is for high school and college-level students who are members of SkillsUSA. More than 5,500 students from every state and three territories competed in 94 contests in technical, skilled and service occupations, including health occupations, this year. In order to qualify for the national competition, the students competed in local and state contests. The state gold medal winners advanced to the national SkillsUSA Championships.