North Dakota State College of Science John Deere Tech students recently placed in the Agricultural Machinery Service Technician Contest at the National Postsecondary Agricultural Student (PAS) Conference, which was located in St. Louis, Mo.

Three NDSCS teams comprised of two students each participated, winning third, ninth, and twelfth places at the national contest.
• 3rd Place: Ben Lindroos and Dominic Ourada. Lindroos is from Sebeka, Minn., and is sponsored by Midwest Machinery of Wadena, Minn. Ourada is from Wabasso, Minn., and is sponsored by Kibble Equipment Inc. of Wabasso, Minn.
• 9th Place: Justin Bauer and Nathan Maus. Bauer is from Bismarck, N.D., and is sponsored by RDO Equipment of Bismarck, N.D. Maus is from Freeport, Minn., and is sponsored by Larsons Inc. of Wheaton, Minn.
• 12th Place: Chris Kucera and Jake Refshaw. Kucera is from Thief River Falls, Minn., and is sponsored by RDO Equipment of Breckenridge, Minn. Refshaw is from Mahnomen, Minn., and is sponsored by Evergreen Implement of Mahnomen, Minn.

Twenty three teams from five states competed in the contest, including colleges from Iowa, Minnesota, New York, North Dakota and Wisconsin. The Agricultural Machinery Technician competition is part of the Career Program Areas with the purpose to allow students to test their knowledge and problem-solving skills in a competitive environment to meet industry needs utilizing a variety of assessment techniques.

The Agricultural Machinery Service Technician Career Program Area is designed to:
• encourage the development of Agricultural Service Technicians’ opportunities;
• recognize individual accomplishments and educational curriculum in Agricultural Service Technician programs;
• encourage cooperation between education and industry; and
• strengthen the PAS organization by encouraging active participation.

The National PAS Student Organization is an organization associated with agriculture/agribusiness and natural resources offerings in approved postsecondary institutions offering baccalaureate degrees, associate degrees, diplomas and/or certificates. PAS is one of 11 career and technical student organizations approved by the U.S. Department of Education as an integral part of career and technical education.

To learn more about the John Deere Tech program at NDSCS, go to www.ndscs.edu/johndeere.