RCC student in line for world computer championship
RCC student Kyle Forst (at center) accepts the congratulations of Certiport officials on his winning one of the six spots on the United States team that will compete in the 2014 Certiport Microsoft Office Specialist World Championships.
Out of over 300,000 entrants from across the United States, Kyle Forst of Middlesex County has been chosen as one of six persons who will compete against representatives of 120 other nations at the 2014 Certiport Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) World Championships in Anaheim, California. Winning in the category of Microsoft Word 2010, Forst received a Microsoft Surface Tablet and a trophy, in addition to the all-expenses-paid trip to Anaheim.
“He has proven his superior knowledge of Microsoft Office applications, the most popular productivity tools in the world, and we wish him the best as he competes at the World Championship,” says Bob Whelan, president and chief executive officer for Pearson VUE (the parent company of Certiport, which arranged the timed exams and interviews on Microsoft Office Word, Excel and PowerPoint programs that constituted the national championship.)
Now a rising senior, Forst has been earning straight As in general curricular subjects at Middlesex High School, as well as the advanced computer classes (offered through a partnership with Rappahannock Community College) that he studies for half the day at Bridging Communities Regional Career and Technical Center in New Kent County.
These classes, covering software development, operating systems, web design, and game design, have already qualified him for an RCC career studies certificate in web design as well as six Microsoft Office Specialist certificates, three Microsoft Technology Associate certificates, and one Microsoft Office Specialist Master certificate. The dedicated instructors at Bridging Communities go above and beyond their duties in many ways; one of them, Paula Canaday, paid for her own trip to the United States championships in Atlanta in order to cheer Forst on to his victory.
Forst is proud to note that he has not taken a single day of absence since starting high school. In addition to his academic achievements, he has represented Middlesex on the track team in in 9th and 10th grades, the wrestling team in 10th grade, and the cross-country team in 10th and 11th grades.
