The automotive technology program at National Park College was awarded a $12,989 Education and Training grant from the Arkansas Motor Vehicle Commission in April.
According to a news release, this grant assists institutions that offer education and training in the field of vehicle service and maintenance to improve training programs with the goal of growing the available workforce for the future.
The program at NPC applied for the grant in January, and funds will be used to purchase major pieces of equipment to educate NPC's high school and college level students. These items include a scope kit with a laptop, diagnostic tools, and a transmission fluid exchanger that will allow for hands-on training in key automotive concepts.
Jason Armitage, automotive service technology instructor, told The Sentinel-Record that with an aging workforce that is struggling to replace the retiring technicians with qualified applicants, the demand for modern technicians is the greatest it has been in the history of the car.
"Training students with the high tech skills is a necessity to keep up with the demand for repair technicians," he said. "The days of the wrench have been replaced by the need for understanding complex electronic systems and the salaries for the technician is rapidly increasing along with the technology. Our ASE Educational Foundation certified program has been developed to prepare the student for these job openings."
Armitage said the scope kit and laptop can capture difficult to diagnose electrical anomalies that would go undetected with traditional electrical test equipment while the scan tool is designed to read sensor inputs from the onboard diagnostic system on the car.
The scan tool "will have Bluetooth capability that will allow it to be projected into the classroom setting allowing instruction on real-life automobiles with malfunctions that the student will see in the repair industry," he said.
With modern cars having between 30 and 100 computers onboard, technicians need to have the ability to reprogram these computers when problems arise. This is similar to updating a desktop computer, but on a car it takes a computer re-flash module and training to be able to update the processors, he said.
It was decided to purchase these pieces of equipment based upon recommendations from the National Park Automotive Advisory Committee, comprised of professional technicians, shop owners, and service consultants from the Garland Country area. The automotive program trains students with the needs of the local industry as its main priority, he said.
Jennifer Lyons, technical and professional division chair, said she was encouraged by the collaboration with the local automotive industry.
"When industry and education work together, the end result is always a better experience for our students," she said. "Our goal is for them to graduate and be ready for employment and this type of cooperation makes that possible."
The items will be in place and used to train the next class of new students entering in the fall and will greatly benefit the students returning for their second year in August, Armitage said.
Local on 06/02/2019