More than 100 students have registered for a newly revised automotive program in the Howard County schools ? a number that surprised school officials.
“We figured we would get about 25 kids the first year, and then all the registrations started coming in,” said Richard Weisenhoff, county coordinator of career and technology education.
The program has a $100,000 equipment budget to buy the latest tools, Weisenhoff said.
The school system had operated an automotive program that was phased into a general energy, power and transportation class during the mid-1990s as its priorities became “much more academic and career-oriented instead of focusing on jobs,” Weisenhoff said.
“But there was always this concern from business and industry, and we heard from parents who wanted the program back.”
The School Board recently approved $3 million to renovate part of the Applications and Research Laboratory where the classes will be held.
Brian England, owner of British American Auto Care in Columbia, served on the committee that recommended the program?s revival.
Last fall, he began the Pre-Automotive Academy in Columbia for Howard County students with support from the Washington, D.C., Maryland and Delaware Service Station and Automotive Repair Association.
“We show the students [ninth- and 10th-graders] just what all the career opportunities are ? from the auto technician to the management side,” England said.
The three-hour courses provide hands-on experience every other Saturday for 14 weeks.
Cory Perrite, a ninth-grader at Wilde Lake High School, said, “I was given an overview of the automotive field, and I learned about basic maintenance such as how to do an oil change.”
At a glance
» The two-year automotive program, which goes into effect in the fall, is one of the school system?s career academies, which include program areas such as biotechnology, power and transportation.
» Juniors and seniors will spend part of their day taking classes at the Applications and Research Laboratory on Route 108 in Ellicott City.
