STEFAN CZAPOROWSKI
Last fall, I profiled our Ornamental Horticulture department and this month, I would like to explore Automotive Technology, another one of the Career Technical Programs at Westfield Vocational Technical High School. The mission of our Automotive Technology program is to create a hands-on learning environment that prepares students for employment in automotive service careers. A major part of students’ hands-on learning experiences involve repairing vehicles for the community. In addition to working with customers from the area, the students also maintain school and city vehicles. Opportunities such as these are invaluable because our students are working in a “real world” scenario, but with the benefit of their experienced instructors as supervisors.
As seniors, our Auto Tech students have the opportunity to show off their skills by participating in the AAA/Ford Auto Skills Contest. This competition between career technical schools across the state starts with a statewide online exam. The top ten scoring schools move on to compete in the state troubleshooting competition. Since we started competing four years ago, students in our Automotive Technology program have qualified in the top ten and participated in the state troubleshooting competition on multiple occasions. In 2011, WVTHS placed second in the state. Our students have also earned many awards as well as multiple scholarships to post secondary schools and are looking forward to competing again this year.
The Automotive Technology department at WVTHS is certified by the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation (NATEF) in six areas: Steering and Suspension, Engine Repair, Brakes, Engine Performance, Electrical and Heating and Air Conditioning. Directly from their website, NATEF’s purpose is “to improve the quality of automotive technicians training programs nationwide at secondary and post-secondary schools”. To accomplish this, NATEF examines the structure, resources and quality of training programs and evaluates them against standards established by those successful in the industry. Last year, with the help of their Program Advisory Board, the WVTHS Automotive Technology program successfully passed the NATEF mid-cycle review.
There are currently fifty-five students enrolled in our Automotive Technology program. Instruction focuses on the key parts of repairing vehicles and vehicle parts, shop safety, work place skills, and career opportunities. Several of our students are working in the automotive field through our Cooperative Education program, and we anticipate more taking advantage of this opportunity in the near future. Other students participate in internships and job shadows which can also lead to employment. Our program prepares students for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certification tests and the NATEF end of program assessment. Our students have the ability to leave our program certified by both ASE and NATEF. As a result, WVTHS has graduates in virtually every dealership, truck fleet, repair shop, and independent repair and auto parts store in Westfield and the surrounding areas. Students leave our program ready for employment or to pursue further education at a post-secondary school.
For more information about our Automotive Technology program or to make an appointment to have work done on your vehicle, please call 413-572-6533.
Stefan Czaporowski
Principal
Westfield Vocational Technical High School
