Oklahoma High School-Age Students Vie for Opportunity to

Compete for National Title:

“America’s Next Top Auto Technicians”

Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills Competition Offers $10 Million in Scholarships

Okmulgee, OK, April 20, 2009 – AAA and Ford are handing high school students the keys to jumpstart their careers in the automotive repair industry as they team up to reward students for their automotive knowledge and technical skills.  The competition is especially relevant during a time when the nation needs more skilled automotive technicians in the wake of more and more motorists keeping and fixing their present vehicles instead of buying new ones.

On April 23, 2009 a total of 20 juniors and seniors representing ten technology centers across Oklahoma will meet at the OSU Institute of Technology in Okmulgee to face off in the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills Competition.  Each two-student team will race the clock to correctly identify and fix intentionally installed “bugs” on identical Ford Focus vehicles.  After properly diagnosing and repairing their vehicle, the teammates must drive their assigned vehicle across the finish line, where the car will be inspected for accuracy and workmanship.

The winning team members not only receive scholarships and other valuable prizes, but will represent Oklahoma in the National Finals in Dearborn, Mich. June 14-16, 2009.

“With so many motorists hanging onto their vehicles longer in this economic climate, it really underscores the desperate need for skilled automotive technicians in this country,” said Chuck Mai, spokesman for AAA Oklahoma.  “This competition rewards aspiring automotive technicians and, we hope, inspires them to get the best training possible so that they can embark on promising careers within the automotive repair industry, possibly with AAA or Ford.”

Both the national and the statewide competitions are organized with the support of Ford personnel, local automotive instructors, and AAA’s Approved Auto Repair program, a AAA public service program that evaluates and rates auto repair facilities throughout the country.

The competition will begin at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, April 23 on the OSU Institute of Technology campus, on the street in front of the Automotive Technology Dept.  The race to diagnose and repair these ‘bugged’ vehicles and may very well be completed within half an hour.

The technology schools in Oklahoma with teams who have qualified for this year’s competition are: Tulsa Technology Center (three teams), Mid America Technology Center (Wayne, Okla.), Meridian Technology Center (Stillwater), Gordon Cooper Technology Center (Shawnee), Francis Tuttle Technology Center (OKC), Indian Capital Technology Center (Muskogee), E. Oklahoma Ct. Technology Center (Choctaw) and Western Technology Center (Burns Flat).