MassBay 'boot camp' gives Framingham students exposure to working on cars

ASHLAND — Twenty-six Framingham High School students are now more knowledgeable about cars after attending an automotive education boot camp through a local community college program.

Massachusetts Bay Community College and Framingham High School partnered to provide the three-week camp, which wrapped up Thursday and was aimed at helping to increase the pipeline of trained technicians.

The camp provided the 26 Framingham students, which included recent graduates and rising upperclassmen, the opportunity to learn more about the automotive industry through hands-on experiences.

"We wanted to create some sort of program to get the students who weren't at vocational high schools (some) exposure to automotive technology," said David Protano, dean of automotive technology at MassBay. "Demand is just off the charts for automotive technicians."

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MassBay's automotive faculty designed a curriculum that includes an overview of safety and maintenance; tire repairs and balancing; warranty; recall services; automotive repair pay scales; the diagnostic process; safety in the automotive labs; and other auto services.

Students received a $1,500 stipend for participating.

The program was funded through MassGrad and MassHire grants secured by Framingham High School and focus on education and career exploration.

Students get hands-on experience from MassBay

MassBay's auto technology program offers sponsored programming from four major automotive brands: BMW, Toyota/Lexus, General Motos and Jeep/Chrysler/Dodge/Ram. It also offers a new nonmanufacture-specific all-brand general studies program, which provides students with a comprehensive, hands-on training on multiple types of makes and models.

Kat Barry, an incoming Framingham High senior, said the program interested her because of her interest in engineering.

"I didn't know anything about cars but the mechanics part of it I liked," she said. "I've just always been more of a math and science person than humanities, so I like building stuff, Legos, all that."

Barry said she didn't know anything about cars other than how to drive them.

"It's really good, life skills-wise because now I know how to change a tire, I know how to change my oil, the basic stuff that everyone should know so you don't always have to be in the shop," she said.

Barry said she enjoyed her experience, saying MassBay provided a balance of hands-on and classroom work.

"I know a lot of people here are more hands-on learners than classroom leaners," she said. "Everything we've learned we've been able to apply."

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Derrick Yancey, also an incoming senior, said he learned everything he thought he was going to learn.

"I wanted to learn how cars work because everyone drives a car but not everyone knows how it works," he said. "It is interesting, but it's not something I would look a for a career ... I consider it just a hobby."

Bob Bolivar, department chair for the Toyota T-Ten program, said he was pleasantly surprised and impressed with the students in the program.

"Without much knowledge of automotive or mechanical, they did really well," he said.

The program has a hands-on paid co-operative component, which enables students to learn in a professsional setting while earning money and college credit.

MassBay's program has a 99% placement rate of its graduates into full-time jobs by graduation, according to public relations director Liz Cooper.

Boot camp responds to student and industry needs

Framingham High's career development coordinator, Julie O'Leary, said staff members noticed a need for students who needed more hands-on learning and were not on the college-bound track.

O'Leary said this need was from students who had to go through a college-bound curriculum because they did not get into competitive vocational schools. O'Leary said these students were struggling with standard schooling and needed more hands-on experience.

"Students are loving the program," she said. "They think their high school experience should be just like this. Students who might typically have their head down and are just not engaged are lighting it up here. I see them taking leadership roles, jumping in front of other students to get the hands-on experience."

Protano said the automotive tech industry is starving for people. He said MassBay instructors frequently get calls from dealerships asking for students ready to work.

"There's a big need," Protano said. "The demand is just off the charts for automotive technicians — there's way more jobs than we have students."

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Bolivar said he's seen the changes and demands in the industry.

"Back when I started, if you had a little experience and a little talent, you could get by," he said. "But now you need both talent, experience and credentials."

O'Leary said Framingham High will return next year, with plans to expand to other vocational programs such as cosmetology and partnering with health care programs for students.

Automotive tech students hear from blind race car mechanic

Thursday marked the end of the three-week program. Students heard from Jay Blake, a blind race car mechanic and motivational speaker. Blake saw a news release about the program and reached out to MassBay.

Blake said before he spoke that it's "incredibly" important for students to learn automotive technology skills for many reasons, "one being to realize that there are opportunities in the trades to make an incredible living and it's also to educate them about the automobile."

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"If they don't choose to be a technician or anything, they at least know more about what they're driving and when they go and get it serviced, (they know) what the people are talking about when they're talking about their car," Blake continued. "The education they're getting here is so important."

In 1997, Blake was involved in a work accident that caused him to lose his sight, and sense of taste and smell. He was 31 years old.

He spoke about five tools students should implement in life: positive attitude, education, passion, determination and teamwork.

"Remember, we're all different," Blake said. "But that's OK. Work together, encourage each other."

"Life is a journey, and it certainly is a rollercoaster," he added. "You will have good times, and you will have bad times. It's not fair and it's not easy. But if you use these tools, you will navigate and succeed."

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Automotive boot camp gives Framingham students car challenges