Battle of the trades: Over 500 students compete at MCTC’s fifth annual Trade Wars

Published on May 15, 2025

By Rachel Adkins

Maysville Community and Technical College recently hosted the fifth annual Trade Wars, an award-winning event showcasing students' skills, innovation, and competitive spirit in skilled trades. 

With over 500 students in attendance, Trade Wars featured live competitions in a range of trades, including nursing, welding, and everything in between. 

Students from regional high schools completed head-to-head, demonstrating their technical expertise and problem-solving abilities. 

“Trade Wars 2025 was another outstanding success! MCTC proudly hosted 24 area high schools and welcomed over 500 students to our beautiful Rowan Campus. It’s always an exciting day watching our future professionals showcase their talents in competitions designed by MCTC faculty across 14 different programs,” remarked Natalee Brown, director of recruitment at MCTC.

Several winners of the competitions took home prizes, including an MCTC-branded banner with the winning category and place listed, trophies, and other prizes related to the competition they participated in.

Sponsors for this year’s event are listed below.

Platinum/Title Sponsor: UK St. Claire

Gold Level Sponsors: Local 503 Plumbers, Pipe Fitters & HVAC Techs, Millwrights Local Union 1076

Bronze Level Sponsors: Asian Industry Kentucky, LLC, The Citizens Bank, Fastenal Co., Mitsubishi Automotive Electric, Plumbers & Steamfitters Local Union 248, Tri-State Building & Construction Trades Council, United States Postal Service

“I’d like to give a huge thank you to our amazing community partners for their generous support and donations—your contributions help make this event possible and impactful for so many young students,” Brown said. “We’re already looking forward to next year!”