(By Matt Pedigo, The Citizen-Times, February 28, 2019, used with permission)
When it comes to having mechanical “breakdowns,” there’s no bigger “lemon” than a certain 2008 Chevrolet HHR.
Yet, in terms of the education and futures of the mechanical career hopefuls among Allen County Career and Technical Center (ACCTC) students, it may just be the most valuable vehicle on Allen County-Scottsville High School’s campus
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Built in Pittsburgh, Penn., by the Megatech Corporation and trucked to ACCTC on a rollback wrecker in early January, the HHR is now an educational exhibit in ACCTC Automotive Technology instructor Todd Stamps’ class
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Though missing most of its roof for viewing purposes, the little vehicle is fully-functional. It starts, runs and drives, has working brake and air-conditioning systems, dash electronics and radio.
“Everything runs and works,” Stamps said. “That way, students can troubleshoot different problems on it.”
Installed in the HHR’s cargo bay beneath the hatchback is a locking control panel wired into the car. From this panel, Stamps can unleash a selection of “gremlins” into the car’s computer system. Students aren’t told what he’s done; it’s up to them to diagnose the problems.
The teaching tool creates the very same sorts of challenges that Stamps’ students will be facing when they take on a real-world career in automotive mechanics, or, before that, seek their ASE (Automotive Service Excellence) certification to do so.
“I really enjoy working with it—the ease of it,” Stamps said, noting the HHR’s versatility. It can be moved and used anywhere in the sprawling shop, which has stalls for eight vehicles as well as a scissors lift, a four-post lift, a pair of two-post lifts and a variety of equipment for doing real work on real vehicles owned by AC-S/ACCTC students and teachers.
“It’s really furthered my knowledge,” adds AC-S senior Dalton Collins in a demonstration last Thursday, in which Collins used computerized code-readers that professional garages might use to try and troubleshoot the HHR’s latest “woes.”
Collins said his post-AC-S graduation plans are to attend the Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College, and the ACCTC Automotive Technology classes have helped prepare him for that. In fact, he has already attained ASE entry-level certification. Collins can be working anytime, even before his AC-S graduation or furthering his education at SKYCTC.
The roughly $19,000 piece of equipment is one of many additions to several ACCTC programs that have come courtesy of a $320,000 state Work Ready Skills Initiative grant in 2017. ACCTC/AC-S Principal Joseph Cosby and others had compiled the grant proposal, which originally sought $750,000.
The state program didn’t give them all they asked for, but did provide a solid start, which the Laura Goad Turner Charitable Foundation and local businesses and industries helped match. The funding has made equipment purchases possible for all of ACCTC’s programs, including Health Science, Computer Technology, Welding, Industrial Maintenance, Computer-Aided Drafting and Marketing.
The HHR isn’t the only purchase for Stamps’ students. In the classroom is another panel that recreates a working automotive fuel injection/ignition system, with working spark plugs. Like the HHR, this also includes a locking control panel where Stamps can introduce “bugs.”
The Automotive Technology course has proven popular, and Stamps credits his predecessors—Mike McClure and Cosby—in helping to build the program. It is open to students in grades nine through 12; about 200 students registered for it, but the course could only take 120. There’s no signs of that slowing down.
“A lot of upcoming freshmen have shown interest,” Stamps said. “We have eighth-grade tours coming in March; we’ll see how much interest we have in that class.”
Even more inspiration may be coming: Diesel. Stamps, who is already ASE-certified in a variety of automotive specialties, is working on his bachelor’s degree in vocational education. When he reaches that goal, he wants to seek his ASE certification in diesel mechanics—the same certification his students would face as an end goal in the diesel curriculum Stamps hopes to offer in the future. The program already has a solid base to build on, he said.
“I’m thrilled with the technology we have at hand to help teach these kids,” he said.