District Five students earn top award, $16,000 in scholarships at Carolinas’ automotive skills contest
May 4, 2015
CHAPIN, SC – Two students from the Center for Advanced Technical Studies earned top honors at this year’s Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition in Charlotte.
Auto technology students Austin Trussell and Jacob Ferris placed third in the state during the April 18 event and received $16,000 total in scholarships to continue their education in auto technology and other fields. Forty students from both North Carolina and South Carolina competed in two-student teams during the annual contest, vying to represent their states at the national finals June 8-10 at Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn, Mich.
“We were excited for our auto tech students and their performance in the Student Auto Skills competition,” said Dr. Bob Couch, director of The Center. “The competition brings together the very best auto tech students from the highest quality programs in the southeast. This award is a tribute to our excellent teachers and our high-achieving students and to the commitment to the preparation required to compete at that level. They certainly represented The Center and District Five very well with their performance.”
The 2015 Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills is a nationwide automotive technology competition, offering millions of dollars in scholarships and prizes to high school juniors and seniors interested in pursuing careers as automotive service technicians. Approximately 12,000 students from across the U.S. are competing for the chance to represent their school and state in the National Finals this year. The competition tests students’ automotive knowledge, workmanship and problem-solving abilities through a series of hands-on diagnostic tests. The awards were presented to students at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
“As a generation that has grown up with digital technology, this year’s students are uniquely qualified to lead the auto industry forward,” said David E. Parsons, president and CEO of AAA Carolinas. “You saw their skills on display in a high-octane environment matching the best talent from the Carolinas.”
Working as a team, Ferris and Trussell raced against the clock to correctly diagnose and repair a deliberately “bugged” 2015 Ford Fiesta SE. Written and hands-on tests were used to score the teams and determine each state’s winners.
“It was a lot of fun (and) something I won’t forget,” said Ferris, an Irmo High School senior who already works part-time as an auto technician at a local business. “At the Center, we’ve learned a lot of electrical, maintenance and light repair skills; and it was nice to show what we learned at the competition and win scholarship money.”
Trussell, a junior at Chapin High School, added: “All the skills we learned here and showed at the competition are skills that can easily get you a job at a shop. I’ve liked cars my entire life and it felt good to get an award for something you love to do.”
Opened in 2012, The Center provides a standalone facility for Lexington-Richland School District Five students to build technical skills, gain certifications and earn college credits. Attended by students from District Five’s four high schools, The Center offers high tech courses in a wide variety of areas from biomedical science and agricultural science to alternative energy and welding. Other program offerings include mechatronics, law enforcement, graphic design, culinary arts and automotive technology.
At The Center, automotive students learn a variety of skills needed to work in the field. Students study brakes, steering, suspension, electrical and the mechanics of other vehicle parts – lessons that prepared Trussell and Ferris for the competition in Charlotte, school officials said.
“Only the top ten teams from the state went to the competition, so it was already a great accomplishment for them to make it to the contest in Charlotte,” said Wes Watts, an auto mechanics instructor at The Center. “To go to this event and place in the top three is really a proud moment for these students and for our program. We’re just really proud of them.”
