The SkillsUSA/VICA turnout was certainly healthy. Approximately 4,200 high school and post-secondary students spent the week attending seminars on vocational careers, and viewed hundreds of exhibits and information booths, including a number that lined the streets outside, around the hall.
The concern cited in the newspaper — and indeed expressed among SkillsUSA officials — centered on federal grants that eventually trickle down to vocational programs in high schools. SkillsUSA officials said they were concerned about a Bush administration proposal to shift a portion of that grant money from vocational training to programs for improving academic achievement.