Boyd Street Magazine November 19

BY: SHARLA BARDIN Driving Future Success COMMUNITY

Norman Car Dealer Donates Car to Education Program

Donating the car at the MNTC in Norman.

A recent car donation to Moore Norman Technology Center will help students accelerate their learning and cruise into new opportunities.

Gulf States Toyota and Fowler Toyota donated a 2017 Toyota Corolla to the center’s automotive service technology program in September.

Instructor Lee Dow said the car will help enhance student learning by giving them a newer model vehicle that will be like the vehicles they’ll encounter in the industry. Experience working with the car will add to their skill set when they’re looking for job opportunities.

“This is a tool for learning – a firsthand look at technology that they’ll be facing,” said Dow, an instructor in the program and internship coordinator.

Dow said the donation also helps accomplish a goal to update the center’s training fleet of vehicles to include newer models.

More than 100 students a year will have the opportunity to train on the donated Corolla. That work includes “bumper to bumper” repairs, Dow said.

The program covers the skills that students will need for jobs as entry-level automotive service and repair technicians. Subjects include automotive preventative maintenance, suspension systems, emissions control systems, brakes, drive trains and electrical work.

Student Noah Storey, 17, said he’s excited to start training on the donated car. For him, it provides the chance to work on a different make of vehicle. The Norman North High School senior is an intern at Fowler Honda. He said the donated car allows him to expand his skills by learning about Toyota technology.

Storey said he’s also impressed with the center’s automotive service technology program, the support from instructors and the opportunities that are providing for students to increase their knowledge.

“We’re all here to learn,” he said. Dow said he believes the Toyota donation also represents the support the program has from area dealerships and industry representatives, including those who serve on the program’s advisory committee. He believes those in the auto industry see the quality training that the center offers and the skills students display when they’re in the workforce.

“That’s going to give them that return on investment,” he said.

The car was presented to the center during a ceremony that included Toyota, state and center officials and students. Officials talked about the long-lasting impact of the donation and the strong partnership between the center and local employers.

“Providing this vehicle for the automotive program to teach their students to perform modern technical vehicle repairs is very important to us,” said Gulf States Toyota Workforce Manager Robert Trevino. “We’re proud of our strong relationship with Fowler Toyota and Moore Norman Technology Center and the work they are doing in Oklahoma to prepare the next generation of skilled workers.”

Brian Ruttman, superintendent at the technology center, said having solid partnerships between the center and local employers is essential.

"To have Fowler Toyota and Gulf States Toyota make an investment of this size to our automotive service technology career program shows that they are truly committed to our students learning and training on vehicles with advanced technology,” Ruttman said.

“We are so very grateful to both Fowler Toyota and Gulf States Toyota for this donation. We look forward to a long, continued partnership, an we remain focused on providing qualified graduates for our local workforce and for the automotive industry.” – BSM Norman Car Dealer Donates Car to Education Program