CascadiaTech News - May 2026 | Washington State Skill Center Association

From Our Director

Congratulations to the 39 students selected as our 2026 Distinguished Graduates and Dennis Kampe Scholarship Recipients. Best of luck to all graduating seniors as you move into the workforce, head to college, an apprenticeship program, or the military. We have a couple weeks of school left. Let's make every day count!

We are doing great things!

-Joan Huston

Important Dates

Thank you to the 200+ family members, friends, sending school officials and staff, instructors, board members, and sponsors who joined us in celebrating our 2025-2026 Distinguished Graduates and Dennis Kampe Scholarship Recipients. Enjoy pictures from the event below that were taken by an Evergreen High School student photographer.

The Distinguished Graduate Award originated in 2015. It was developed to honor and recognize graduating seniors by acknowledging their dedication and hard work throughout the year. The purpose of the Distinguished Graduate Award is to highlight the student in each program area that exemplifies the technical, academic, and professionalism skills at the highest level. The Distinguished Graduate Award recipients represent the most accomplished students from Cascadia Tech Academy. Students were either nominated by their instructor or by the program’s Advisory Committee.

The Dennis Kampe Scholarship started in 2000 as the General Advisory Committee Scholarship. It was renamed in 2024 in honor of Dennis Kampe’s 40 years of service to Cascadia Tech Academy and Cascadia Tech Academy Foundation. This scholarship awards outstanding seniors in their program area and is intended for students who have post-secondary plans and exemplify the very best of their program. Recipients are initially interviewed and selected by each program’s Advisory Committee. Scholarships can be used to purchase tools, pay for books, or tuition in order to support students as they go to colleges, universities, technical schools, or enter an apprenticeship program. This year, $40,000 in scholarships were given to 20 Cascadia Tech Academy students!

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$10 - Class of 2026 Yard Signs

Student Spotlight

Top 10 in Washington

The winners of the 2026 Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Washington State Championship Spring Qualifier have been announced by Certiport, a Pearson Business, the leading provider of performance-based IT certification exams that accelerate people’s academic and career opportunities.

Winning 4th in the Microsoft Excel (Microsoft 365 Apps) category is Information Technology Systems, Service & Security student, Jacob Marquez. Jacob competed against students from across Washington to earn this coveted placement.

To compete in the Spring Qualifier, students aged 13 to 22 were eligible to participate in one of six competition tracks by submitting a qualified, passing score on the MOS Word, Excel®, or PowerPoint® certification exams by May 1, 2026. The Microsoft Office Specialist certification is the only official Microsoft-recognized certification for Microsoft Office globally and serves as a powerful instrument for assessing students’ skills and preparing them for real-world application of their knowledge.

Washington State Skill Center Association