A student in Clark College’s Diesel Technology lab. Photo: Clark College/Jenny Shadley
Clark College is hosting a free workshop for women interested in advanced manufacturing and the mechanical trades on Thursday, September 9 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Clark College’s main campus.
This roll-up-your-sleeves event is designed specifically for women to learn about the exciting career opportunities that are available in the mechanical and advanced-manufacturing fields. Guests will be able to tour the college’s Automotive, Diesel, and Welding labs, participate in hands-on activities, and speak with professors.
Closed-toe shoes and long jeans are required; long-sleeved shirts are recommended. Safety goggles and masks are required and will be provided.
Properly trained technicians are in high demand in the advanced manufacturing and mechanical industries, and these careers can be rewarding both financially and professionally. However, a recent study found that only 1 in 3 manufacturing professionals are women.
“We know that, even in this day and age, women can be discouraged from pursuing careers in fields like automotive technology and welding,” said Armetta Burney, Clark College Interim Dean of Workforce Professional Technical Education and STEM. “And yet for years we’ve seen our female students succeed in these programs and enter the workforce. The college is holding this event in hopes of showing women the range of career opportunities available to them.”
Two $1,800 scholarships will be made available to students who attend this event and enroll in a Clark College Automotive, Diesel, or Welding program by fall 2022. One scholarship was made available by Madden Industrial Craftsmen, the other through an anonymous donor.
Women interested in attending the event can learn more at https://tinyurl.com/yfb6e6qk or contact Hernan Garzon at hgarzon@clark.edu. The event is free and open to the public, though prior registration is encouraged. Guests will meet in the Automotive Technology lab on Clark College’s main campus (near the Orange 1 parking lot), 1933 Ft. Vancouver Way. Maps and directions are available at www.clark.edu/maps. If you need accommodation due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event, you should contact Clark College’s Disability Support Services Office at 360-992-2314 or 360-992-0901 VP, as soon as possible.
Clark College expressly prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, perceived or actual physical or mental disability, pregnancy, genetic information, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, creed, religion, honorably discharged veteran or military status, citizenship, immigration status, or use of a trained guide dog or service animal in its programs and activities. Learn more at www.clark.edu/nds.
Automotive Technology steers through challenges
Clark College Automotive Technology students maintain their distance while learning about air conditioning systems.
When Clark College made the switch to online instruction during COVID-19, students showed their tenacity by adapting to new ways of learning. But some challenges take more than determination to overcome. For instance, what if your “homework” is an automobile you need to repair—what then?
Well, that’s when your professors’ creativity and flexibility come in. When Clark’s Dealer Ready Automotive Technology programs faced COVID-19 restrictions, the college found a way to help students complete their hands-on labs in the shop.
The college set up a system for daily health screening checks. It has required face coverings for both students and employees. To comply with social distancing, the professors re-organized the garage with fewer students. The programs integrated online learning with in-person labs to keep students on the path while minimizing in-person class time. The program’s creative solutions for keeping its students learning were featured in the July edition of Northwest Automotive Trades Association (NATA) Industry Review.
Similar models will be used throughout summer and fall terms for all students taking Career Technical Education classes that require hands-on labs.
President Dr. Karin Edwards recently had the opportunity to visit Clark’s Toyota T-TEN program to talk with instructors Tonia Haney and Mike Godson and observe students working in the reconfigured, socially distanced lab environment. She learned how the automotive instructors adjusted the program to COVID-19 restrictions, helping students complete their programs while putting safety first.
Dr. Karin Edwards, left, meets with Automotive Technology professors Tonia Haney and Mike Godson.
Smaller classes, safer classes
Two new cohorts of students start in the Automotive Technology program each fall: T-TEN (Toyota/Lexus) and HiTECC (Honda PACT, Audi AEP and Dick Hannah dealers). Normally, each program starts with 20 students per cohort, for a total of 40.
But to maintain social distancing requirements, fewer students will be admitted in each cohort this fall.
Haney says that to begin an automotive program, a student must be hirable, have a good driving record, and be at college-level math and English.
“To diagnose with computers, you must have a good understanding of electronics,” Haney added. “But you have to be able to turn a wrench.”
Making apprenticeships work
Clark College provides hands-on instruction so graduates are equipped to step into good jobs. Clark’s automotive programs are apprenticeships that require students to concurrently be working at a dealership garage or independent repair facility so that they can put into practice what they learn in the automotive lab. Students have three days of instruction in Clark’s automotive labs weekly, followed by three days of in-dealer apprenticeship experience.
Most students work in shops in the Vancouver-Portland metro area, but students have worked at dealerships as far north as Centralia (83 miles from campus) and as far east as The Dalles (90 miles).
Although auto repair and maintenance facilities are deemed “essential services” during the coronavirus outbreak, Haney says there may be fewer apprenticeship slots available because dealers may not be hiring as many people.
Haney adds, “We may make exceptions to the apprenticeships, due to COVID.”
Nick Ferguson entered Clark College’s Automotive Technology program to move up in his career.
From a hobby to a career
Nick Ferguson, 33, lives in Tigard and has been working at Lexus of Portland for 10 years as a lube technician doing oil changes, minor maintenance and repairs. He realized that in order to advance in his career and be considered for promotions, he needed more training.
He enrolled in Clark’s Toyota T-TEN program because “I wanted to move up in the shop. It was the only way to move up.”
Ferguson earned his GED in 2005. He hadn’t attended any college classes. When he started Clark’s program two years ago, in the Lexus shop he could do work that was supervised by a team lead, but as he neared graduation from Clark’s Toyota T-TEN program, he says, “Now I’m doing anything and everything they’ll let me do.”
For the past two years, Aaron Quick, 19,has driven 140 miles round-trip between Winlock and Vancouver to participate in Clark’s Toyota T-TEN program.
“I’ve always enjoyed working on cars,” says Quick, who graduated from the program this spring. “I work on my own cars, and I work on my parents’ and friends’ cars too.”
Student Aaron Quick commuted to and from his home in Winlock for two years to complete his Automotive Technology degree at Clark College.
During his senior year at Centralia High School, he started looking for a robust, hands-on automotive technology program close to home, but he couldn’t find one, so he applied to Clark and started the program immediately after high school graduation. Clark has turned Quick’s hobby into a vocation.
Haney says, “Most students starting in the fall already have been hired by a sponsoring dealer and are working throughout the summer in a variety of different positions—from lot porter to lube technicians or even line tech, depending on their skills coming in. When classes start in the fall, most students will have three months or more of experience in the dealer to relate to instruction. Even if that experience is parking cars, it still helps to relate to daily instructional topics.”
An open house for Clark College’s Automotive Technologies in 2019 showcased the college’s partnership with Dick Hannah Automotive.
The State of Washington has recognized Clark College for its outstanding work in Career Launch programs that support student learning and employment. Two Clark College automotive programs have been endorsed by the state’s Career Launch Initiative. That good news was announced April 1.
“We have forged dealer partnerships that have helped make our programs successful. Our ‘Earn and Learn’ model really complements those dealers who have a desire to ‘grow their own’ technician,” said Tonia Haney, head of Clark College Automotive Technologies. “Students completing these programs will have the experience and certifications to start their career. Most importantly, our graduates will have a job in a dealership that is invested in helping them grow into a successful technician.”
Opportunities to expand
Kristin Kepner completed the automotive program in 2017 and is currently working at Toyota of Portland.
This endorsement allows Clark College to apply for additional state grants to invest in equipment and technology. It also helps the programs expand to increase the number of the students and automotive dealership partners.
Both programs train technicians to work in the automotive industry. Clark’s students enrolled in a Dealer Ready program participate in paid internships, receive factory certified training, and graduate with credentials from highly respected automotive industry organizations including the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE).
Students learn current automotive technology by working in a 14,000-square-foot facility on state-of-the-art simulators and late-model vehicles donated by local industry.
“Because of our collaboration with Clark College and the T-TEN program, we are able to strengthen our dealership’s core, position our company for the future, and put our people in a position to win,” said Dan Morton, Shop Manager and Diagnostic Specialist at Kuni Lexus of Portland.
High-Demand Jobs
Governor Jay Inslee meets Clark College Mechatronics students February 20, 2020 at a meeting at SEH America with Career Launch and community partners in Southwest Washington.
Clark’s graduates are in high demand by dealerships and experience an accelerated path to better pay and benefits. Clark College is certified by the Automotive Service Excellence Education Foundation and has been training automotive technicians for more than 40 years.
Clark now has three programs that are Career Launch endorsed. Clark’s Mechatronics program was certified last fall, working with business partner SEH-America. With Career Launch support, additional high-tech companies in Clark County plan to launch similar partnerships this fall.
In February, Governor Jay Inslee visited SEH-America to meet with Clark students and the Career Launch partners to learn more about the program and hear from students.
Students have the benefit of working a part-time job in the automotive industry. The company pays the student’s tuition while they attend Clark to earn their certificate or degree. The partnership relies on the college’s ability to work with employers ensuring curriculum is relevant to the local industry. It’s a partnership that maximizes student success.
“This is a great opportunity for Clark students,” said Dr. Sandra Fowler-Hill, Interim President of Clark College. “Working strategically with our industry partners, we can help develop the talent pipeline that will allow local companies to grow and will provide outstanding opportunities for our students to succeed.”
Clark College Automotive Technology holds Open House
Clark College Automotive Technology Open House
The Clark College Automotive Technology department welcomes prospective students and their families to its annual Open House on Wednesday, February 20, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Guests will be able to tour the program’s 14,000 square-foot facility, meet with faculty and staff, connect with local dealership managers, and speak with professional technicians about career opportunities. They will also be able to learn about the college’s Dealer Ready programs, which allow students to earn income and work experience through internships during the course of their degree program.
About the Clark College Automotive Technology Department With a program history that spans more than 40 years, Clark College’s Automotive Technology department has received community recognition for producing top-tier automotive technicians and for its focus on hands-on learning and partnerships with dealerships that include Toyota, Honda, Dick Hannah, and Audi.
Clark Gets Technical
High school students visit Clark’s Automotive Technology program for a quick lesson under the hood during the 2015 Professional Technical Day.
Last Thursday 375 high school students visited Clark during its 24th annual Professional Technical Day, visiting with instructors in 18 different programs and finding out more about how to enter these fields themselves.
“Professional Technical Day is fantastic way to introduce local high school students, career counselors, teachers and administrators to the career technical educational opportunities that are available here at Clark College,” says Genevieve Howard,
Students in Clark’s Bakery program share their experiences with high school students during the 2015 Professional Technical Day.
Clark College Dean of Workforce, Career & Technical Education. “With the reduction of career technical education programs in the high schools, this is often the first exposure many students have to these career opportunities, and I think Clark faculty and staff do a great job of getting students excited and engaged around these opportunities.”
The students came from 15 different high schools from the Vancouver and Portland area, including Mountain View, Ft. Vancouver, Union, and Grant. Each student could pick two different program presentations during the half-day event. Popular programs included Automotive (and its highly regarded Toyoto T-TEN program), Welding, Bakery, Nursing/Dental Hygiene, Early Childhood Education, Business Technology, and Medical Office.
Area high school counselors and educators had a chance to hear about the future of technical careers from industry experts during Clark’s 2015 Professional Technical Day.
In addition to the students, 45 counselors, teachers, and principals attended the event. They were given a full tour of the available programs, as well as the opportunity to hear a panel discussion with industry experts about job prospects and educational requirements for today’s professional technical careers. Panelists were: Jim Lucey, human resources director of Linear Technology; Matt Houghton, general manager of Schurman Machine; Natalie Pacholl, training program specialist at SEH America; and Craig Baldwin, head of worldwide operations at nLight.
“At Professional Technical Day, high school students get a rare opportunity to interact with Clark College instructors and professors in hands-on learning environments that demonstrate the academic rigor and technical skill involved in career pathways such as: Welding Technology, Automotive Technology, Mechatronics, and Computer Networking, Science and Engineering,” says Clark College Student Recruitment Specialist Jami Fordyce, who helped organize the event. “We hope that students leave inspired and more confident than ever that college is part of their future, and that Clark College is a wonderful place to start.”
