FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DCC AUTOMOTIVE PROGRAM

RECERTIFIED BY NATEF

DCC's Automotive Analysis and Repair program was recently re-certified by the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation. Shown are professors Bill Roche and Danny Rakes, left, who are holding the plaque, as Dr. Ed White, Dean of the Division of Business and Engineering Technologies, right, looks on.

            DANVILLE, VA., October 16, 2006 --“If you take your car to someone who was a mechanic 25 years

 ago or more, he or she would probably close the hood and tell you to go to the dealership,” says Danny Rakes, Assistant Professor of Automotive Analysis and Repair at Danville Community College.

“After 20 years of teaching automotive classes, I can see that there has been a total change in the electronics!”, he adds.

The National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation, Inc. (NATEF) promotes up-to-date automotive training, textbooks and equipment. Rakes says that recently the DCC Automotive Analysis and Repair program was re-certified by NATEF which regularly encourages the College to keep its automotive curricula state-of-the-art.     

NATEF is a separate tax exempt foundation that works with the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) to evaluate automotive training programs and makes recommendations for ASE program certification. Although it was a lengthy process, Rakes is pleased with the results.

“This is great news for automotive-minded young people and their parents,” says Donald Seyfer, NATEF Chair. “Because this program increases cooperation between local education and industry leaders, it gives added assurance that DCC’s graduates will be employable entry-level technicians.”

According to Rakes, DCC’s Automotive Analysis and Repair program has been NATEF-certified since 1994. The program must be recertified every five years, which makes the next NATEF recertification date in 2011.

The evaluation process included an extensive self-evaluation and an on-site evaluation, explains Dr. Edward T. White, Dean of the Business and Engineering Technologies Division. White says Rakes and Bill Roche, Professor of Automotive Analysis and Repair, were instrumental in the program’s recertification. He explains that Rakes, Roche, other administrators, and curriculum advisory committee members had to rate the program on 10 standards. Once the application and self-evaluation was submitted, the on-site evaluation was conducted by an Evaluation Team leader and local technicians.

Preparation for the NATEF recertification included, but was not limited to, the formal presentation of tests, syllabus outlines, documentation of school work, and updated percentages of the employment among the students in the program, Rakes explains.

Rakes says an average of 85 percent of students who graduated from the program in the last five years are presently employed. One hundred percent of the students who graduated from the program over the last three years are employed and 88 percent of the graduates from the last 10 years are employed as well, Rakes adds.

While other colleges may only promote motorsports to entice new students, White says the DCC program prepares students for all aspects of work in the automotive field.

“DCC’s program prepares students for success,” says White. “Our graduates represent every aspect of the broad field of jobs, such as sales, technicians and also in the motorsports area.  We also have three web-based motorsports classes.”

Recertification calls for a tremendous amount of paperwork, up-dating equipment and teaching materials, as well as offering teaching techniques to meet NATEF standards, says Rakes.

 NATEF focuses on several elements of learning, including brakes, engine repair, auto transmission, manual transmission, alignment, electrical, and heating and air conditioning. Rakes explains there is a difference between the community college and high school automotive programs. He says the high school programs are only required to teach four aspects of the automotive analysis and repair program: brakes, electrical, engine repair, and alignment/suspension.

“Community college students can put up to 12 hours a week in the lab, whereas high school students can not spare that amount of time,” says Rakes.

According to Rakes, DCC invests both time and money into the program.

“We are very fortunate to have up-to-date, current equipment for our program,” says Rakes. “It shows we really care about the program.”

White says an average of $30,000 - $35,000 is spent on the program each year, which does not include the curriculum’s annual budget.

            “It is a constant struggle to find the money, and then to select which piece of equipment is needed most,” adds White. “But we recognize the importance of keeping our programs state-of-the-art.”

Rakes agrees that last year’s new purchase of an alignment machine cost almost $38,000. But this purchase and others are worth it to ensure students are trained using the most up-to-date equipment. A combination of high school automotive instructors and trained automotive technicians suggest which pieces of equipment will be most beneficial to the program, White explains.               

The DCC Automotive Analysis and Repair program caters to both traditional and nontraditional students, says Rakes. Both male and female students are encouraged to enroll.

“Our students’ ages range from 50 to 18,” Rakes adds. “We had 28 students last fall, compared to an average of 15-18 students each semester. Some people come in for the skill training, while other students are attracted to the program because they can gain ‘hands-on’ experience.”

At one time, auto body courses were included under the two-year Automotive Analysis & Repair Diploma Program, adds Rakes. Now, Auto Body is a separate curriculum, a one-year Certificate program.

Although Automotive Analysis and Repair students have the opportunity to work on their own projects, the cars cannot be older than 10 years, says Rakes.

“Yes, restoring antiques is a part of auto repair, but we focusing on teaching the repair of late model vehicles,” says Rakes.

White adds that the program also accepts donated vehicles. He says people who wish to donate vehicles may contact the Danville Community College Educational Foundation (c/o Buddy Rawley, Director of Development, 434.797.8437, or brawley@dcc.vccs.edu.)

For more information about the Automotive Analysis and Repair program, contact Danny Rakes at 434.797.8521 or Bill Roche, at 434.797.8534.