Washington Leadership Training Institute: Sept. 21-25

Leaders and Advocates are Born at WLTI

WLTI Overview

SEPTEMBER 21-25, 2024

Held in Washington, D.C., each September, SkillsUSA’s Washington Leadership Training Institute conference (WLTI) offers students and advisors from across the country unique opportunities to advocate for the skilled trades while receiving advanced leadership training.

Other WLTI events include tours of D.C.’s famous monuments and museums, panel discussions with government officials, a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery and more.

However, the highlight of the four-day event is when student delegations conduct in-person visits with their elected officials on Capitol Hill to advocate for SkillsUSA and career and technical education. During those visits, students share the value and benefits of SkillsUSA participation through their own personal experiences. They also deliver passionate appeals for continued career and technical education support. Congressional leaders come away from these special visits inspired by the promise of a new generation, and students leave with a newfound sense of pride, purpose and confidence that their voices both matter … and make a difference.

WLTI is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the hundreds of students who participate each year.

Congressional Visit Information

For SkillsUSA members attending WLTI this year, check out this section for resources on how to make your congressional visits as effective as possible and to help you follow up afterward.

Advisors, please go over the following information with WLTI delegation members during state planning time:

Congressional Visit Materials

Each state will be given a set of leave-behinds for your congressional visits. Extra materials are available in WLTI Headquarters if needed and you can include small state gifts if you like. Your leave-behind packet should include:

  • SkillsUSA Advocacy Brochure (printed)
  • List of Delegation Members – Complete the list of members on this fillable PDF to leave with the congressional representative or senator so they know who visited.
  • Congressional Visit Report FormAssign one person to complete a digital report following your visit. List your state, who you met, the name of the representative or senator and a visit summary. Please be complete as possible. These reports must be completed and submitted during WLTI.
  • Sample thank-you noteAssign one person to write one thank-you note for your group to mail to each representative or senator. SkillsUSA notecards are provided. Please drop off your completed, unsealed thank-you notes to the WLTI headquarters. SkillsUSA will provide postage and mail them on your behalf.
  • WLTI Press ReleaseEach WLTI group or individual attendee should send a press release to their local newspaper upon returning home. A fill in release is located on the SkillsUSA advocacy site. This can be sent to your local media outlets, up to five at one time. After the release is submitted, follow up with the media outlet(s) by calling or emailing.

We post photos from WLTI each day during the event. You can see the photos below.

We are using Facebook photo albums to share our pictures from national conference. You don’t have to be a member of Facebook to see them, but if you are, be sure to click “like” for SkillsUSA.

We also post these photos on Flickr.

Saturday

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday