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www.oakvillebeaver.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Thursday, July 1, 2010 · 8 Abbey Park student earns six medals at skills competitions By Nathan Howes OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF F or the past two years, 17-year-old Carolyn Judd has been building her dreams of being in the architectural field, one competition at a time. It's safe to say her foundation is being built on solid ground. Judd is a Grade 12 graduate from Abbey Park High School in Oakville. Since Grade 10, she has beat out hundreds of students in the skilled trades competition for Architectural Technology and Design/CADD to reach the national level to compete for her school. Judd has won several medals. Last year, she took gold in the Halton Skills Competition and the Ontario Skills Competition and took bronze in the Canadian Skills Competition. This year she took silver in regionals, gold in provincials and bronze in nationals again. "It feels awesome. I'm really lucky with the opportunities that I'm presented with. Winning medals goes beyond that I think," said Judd. "I am really grateful for the opportunities that I've been given and the doors that have opened for me as a student in my field." Judd uses CADD software for her architectural designs. She and the other students have to design a house through building code that could be constructed from top to bottom. This includes different sets of drawings, from sets of mechanical drawings to presentation drawings, which would be furniture floor plans and finish- NIKKI WESLEY / OAKVILLE BEAVER ON TOP OF THE WORLD: Abbey Park High School student Carolyn Judd, 17, holds up her bronze medal from this year's Canadian Skills Competition.On her desk are the five other medals she has received in the past two years at the regional, provincial and national skills competitions for Architectural Technology and Design/CADD. es. She competes against other students Judd doesn't view the male-dominated tech through assignments. trade field as a challenge or an obstacle. It's "We get an assignment in the morning. We quite the opposite, and she sees it as an opporsit down at the computer for eight hours with a tunity. "I kind of look at it like an advantage actulunch break," said Judd. "We produce all the drawings that are asked for and they're marked ally. They all look at me like, "Oh it's just a girl." But to me [that] is an ego competition," said at the end of the day." Judd. "I don't look at it as competing against guys. I just try to do my best." With the amount of success Judd has achieved already at her age, it's no surprise that her peers are just as excited about her accomplishments as her friends. "They all kind of go, `Oh my God you won a medal, congratulations, it's such a huge deal'. And they are proud of me. I appreciate it because all my friends are always there for me and proud of me." Competing in these competitions and even just taking the design courses in Grade 10 and 11 happened by chance. This was all thanks to the influence of her teacher, Sarah Cunningham. ! S "I got really interested in it and I definitely OR LES E ½ PRIC credit a lot of my interest to my teacher. I have DON'T PAY DOLLAR SALE TILL 2011 ALL IN-STOCK AREA RUGS OFF WALL TO WALL CARPET $ 1 $ 2 1 $ 1 $ 1 $ 50 BONUS $ UP TO % an excellent teacher. She's made me really love what I do. She's probably the best thing that's ever happened to me. I'm just so lucky to have her and I wish there were more teachers like her in Halton." Cunningham had pushed her to start the skills challenge in Grade 11, before Judd even knew this was something she wanted to do. Cunningham just advised her to try out the Halton Skills. "She thought it would be fun for me to do. There were other kids doing it and I ended up winning in Grade 11 and went to nationals. I'm really happy she did that." Judd's teacher has noticed the changes in her since she first taught her in Grade 10, when she used to be a quiet student. Today Judd has found her path and takes advantage of all the opportunities that have come her way. "I am very proud of her because this is typically is a male-dominated field. She has been the only female for the last two years competing and she wins. It's a little bit of a different path for young ladies and she is doing very well at it." Cunningham has represented the school at the national level in the competitions for the third year in a row. She hasn't left empty handed yet. "Each year I have brought home a medal for my students. It shows the caliber of students we have at our school and the program that I am running. It's quite high-end and a lot of kids are drawn to it." Even though the actual competitions don't give out monetary scholarships, Cunningham has helped Judd apply to Skills Ontario for some scholarship and bursary funds, which would help with Judd's plans for a post-secondary education this fall. "I have been accepted at Dalhousie University in Halifax. I'm taking general arts there for my first two years, and then I'm applying for the bachelor of environmental design for my second and third [term]," said Judd. "I hope to do my masters in architectural after that." If all goes well with her university education, Judd might be able to make her dream come true some day. "I would love to own an architectural firm. It's a big dream, but with hard work I'm sure I will be able to get there. I will just have to dedicate myself." 905.847.7333 AREA RUG PAD $ Serving Oakville Since 2005 1 1 or toll free 1.866.707.7333 · airport flat rates · 24 hr. service · commercial accounts · local & out-of-town · luxury sedans · weddings · proms s r r TM edwinlimoinc@yahoo.com www.edwinlimoinc.com