Illinois Career School Helping High School Graduates Become Automotive Technicians
A career school in Sterling, Illinois, is helping train high school students for careers as automotive technicians, reports Shaw Local.
The Whiteside Area Career Center’s Automotive Technology program is designed for high school juniors and seniors, training them in the basics of automotive repair and service. The program, which can run one to two years, abides by Automotive Service Excellence standards.
First-year students are trained in foundational skills like lubrication, brakes, engine tune–up, suspension, fuel injection, computer controls, electrical systems, exhaust systems, and cooling. In their second year, students move on to more intensive work like differential operation, transmissions and clutches, engine diagnostics, heating, and cooling systems. Instructor Bill Hare shared that tests and curriculum in the program are also designed to mimic ASE exams to best prepare them.
Additionally, second-year students become eligible for work-based learning placements, which allow them to spend part of their school week earning experience in a real life workplace. The class partners with local churches, county departments, and state organizations to connect students with opportunities to work on real vehicles.
“We can get them ready to take the test,” Hare said. “They need two years experience before they can take and pass the test and get their certificate, but we’re preparing them to go out to do that.”
Eventually, Hare hopes to incorporate lessons on electric and hybrid vehicles, but is currently researching safe, entry-level training modules that avoid any high-voltage risks.
Several of the program’s students have already turned internships into job offers. This past May, WACC hosted a Work-Based Learning Signing Day to recognize nine students who gained such job offers.
“I joined the program because I’m interested in working on cars… doing transmission stuff and engine swaps,” said Rock Falls High School junior Tucker Ullrich, who currently works at Moore’s Tires in Rock Falls, and plans to become a technician after graduation.