Collin Goshert is a quick study, a fast learner. The 18-year-old resident of Warwick Township thrives in a nurturing and supportive educational environment.

What Goshert has been able to accomplish in 10 short months is nothing short of amazing.

"National champion" has a certain ring to it.

"From my perspective, I didn't think it was difficult to learn to operate," said Goshert. "For some, it's more challenging. It's not hard to learn if you have the right teachers and the right support. There's operating and doing it proficiently; there's a difference."

Near the end of June, Goshert took top honors in the heavy equipment operations category at the fifth annual SkillsUSA Championships in Atlanta, Ga. Goshert scored 866.5 out of a possible 1,000 points in 22 judged competitions over two days to best 24 other high school students from 18 states.

Goshert had qualified for the SkillsUSA Championships with a first-place showing at the Heavy Equipment Pennsylvania Skills Competition near Shippensburg on April 2 and 3.

Goshert is currently employed full time as an operator assistant at B.R. Kreider & Son, a paving and excavating contractor located at 63 Kreider Lane, Manheim.

"On that Friday night, (SkillsUSA Championships officials) had an awards ceremony at State Farm Arena," said Goshert, a 2025 graduate of Warwick High School. "I was like, 'Well, I made it to nationals anyway.' They took us backstage, and when they brought us out on stage, they announced the third-place finisher, the second-place finisher and then finally the winner. I didn't know I won until then, so that was pretty nerve-racking."

"I was pretty happy with how I did," continued Goshert. "There were a couple of tasks I knew I didn't do so well, and there were others where I was pleasantly surprised. I couldn't have done much better than first place."

At the national event in Atlanta, the competition tested both operating skills proficiency and the knowledge of heavy equipment through written evaluations.

"Heavy equipment is just really big toys that have built the world we live in," said Goshert. "There's no one way to operate it. It's about the instructor showing you how to do it. It's about how you learn and how you practice it. There's a lot of hand-eye coordination that goes into it. Some of it is knowing what you're going to be doing with that machine."

Goshert spent his entire senior year of high school at the Brownstown Campus of the Lancaster County Career and Technology Center, 231 Snyder Road, Ephrata. Before enrolling in instructor Justin Findley's class, Goshert had little experience with heavy equipment operations.

"Surprisingly, I had no prior experience," said Goshert. "Maybe a little with a John Deere riding mower, but nothing as big as I got to run in class or at work."

"From his first time operating a wheel loader to becoming not only a state champion, but a national champion, Collin showed his determination to be the best that he could," said Findley. "His hard work has paid off, and as his instructor, I'm very proud of him and his accomplishments."

Over a period of two months before the competitions, Goshert received some formal instruction from Findley and B.R. Kreider trainers Lawrence Hershey and Heath Kreiser to prepare himself for the event. But when the chips were down, he leaned on the overall skills that he had been developing since last fall.

"I think (the success was a result of) a couple of different things," said Goshert. "I think having a lot of general knowledge helped. My teacher at CTC (Findley) helped me a ton. I wasn't into this stuff before I took his class. That helped. Everyone I work with on a daily basis helped me, and our two trainers (Hershey and Kreiser) showed me how to operate equipment. I think it's better to learn by watching."

For additional information, go to https://lancasterctc.edu.