Billy Schaeffer earns SkillsUSA Western PA Region Student of the Year

Congratulations to Deer Lakes senior Billy Schaeffer who was named the SkillsUSA Western PA Region Student of the Year!

Billy is a third-year student in A.W. Beattie’s Sports Medicine program.

“I knew something was up when I saw our advisors walking onto the stage,” Billy said. “Then someone started talking about the student of the year award and read a whole bio without mentioning my name, so I knew at that point. I was already on stage in front of so many people, and I just had the biggest smile on my face. It was an awesome experience.”

Billy credited his parents for teaching him how to have a strong work ethic.

“I’ve always been told if I work as hard as I can, I can meet my goals,” he said. “If you keep working, you’ll be successful.”

Billy has been named Student of the Month in the Sports Medicine program three times and was twice named Athlete of the Month at Deer Lakes School District where he was a starting guard on the 2023 WPIAL Champion basketball team. He is a member of the National Honor Society, National Technical Honor Society, Hope Squad, and Stand Together. He plans to compete in SkillsUSA this school year.

He said being in a variety of activities has enabled him to develop leadership skills that he can use in the future.

Having been a lifelong athlete, Billy chose to attend A.W. Beattie’s Sports Medicine.

“I had been interested in learning about Sports Medicine for a while, and I wanted to learn how to take care of myself, my injuries and even my teammates’ injuries,” he said. “It’s nice to know all the anatomy, which is one of my favorite parts of the class, knowing all the muscles and bones and injury treatments.”

Billy’s advice to younger students is to “find what interests you the most and put as much work in as you possibly can.”

Billy's future plans may include service in the military or pursuing a career in the Sports Medicine field.