By Jasmine Hsieh
The Scene staff
Forest Park’s automotive technology department is maintaining enrollment and expanding activities at a time when the college overall is losing students.
The department recently hosted a job fair, participated in a regional contest and completed the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation certificate.
“The program is very good,” said Joshua Frazier, 26, a second-year auto tech student. “It trains us in every aspect of the mechanical parts of a car and provides us with lots of hands-on opportunities.”
About 90 students have been enrolled in auto tech programs each semester for the past two years, while the Forest Park campus overall has lost about 30 percent.
“In that sense, we actually had a 12 percent increase in our department’s enrollment,” Chair Rick Anthes said.
Beyond classes, the department operates a mechanic shop for Forest Park faculty and staff, repairing 15 to 20 vehicles a week.
Students are in charge of the entire process, answering phone calls, scheduling appointments, writing orders, ordering auto parts, repairing cars and submitting bills to the cashier’s office.
“We have a lot of freedom here because we get to make our own decisions,” said Robert Givens III, 38, a second-year auto tech student. “And we have really good faculty and lab techs that provide us with all the help and supervision we need to get jobs done.”
Anthes was the youngest faculty member in the department until two years ago, when some of his older colleagues retired.
“We brought in new faculty members and suddenly, I’m the oldest one now,” he said. “I’m still getting used to it. Having young faculty here has brought many good changes to the program. It makes our work very fun every day.”
Automotive technology was one of the single-campus programs created at Forest Park in the 1960s. It offers three tracks: Associate in applied science degree in automotive technology, certificate of proficiency in automotive technology and certificate of specialization in automotive technology.
Most students complete a certificate first, work in the field for a few years then return to earn the associate degree.
“Some students would actually graduate from here three times, which is very interesting,” he said.
In September, the department hosted the first in-house job fair for its own students. Companies such as Dobbs Tire and Auto and Enterprise Fleet Management hired five right away.
In February, Frazier and student Thomas Furbee placed third and fifth in the SkillsUSA Regional Competition at Ranken Technical College, competing against 12 others from secondary and post-secondary schools.
They were tested on diagnostic proficiency in electrical systems, engine repairs, heating and air conditioning, transmissions, brakes, steering and suspension.
“It was the first time we ever participated in any competition, but we got such good news,” Anthes said. “We’re very happy about it and are looking forward to participating in the future.”
The department also completed the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation certificate. The non-profit organization is dedicated to improving the quality of auto tech training programs nationwide.
The Forest Park mechanic shop services all makes and models of vehicles, including hybrids. The department has to absorb losses in case of mistakes, so it turns down some jobs if needed parts are too expensive to take the risk.
Services aren’t available to students because of payment and liability concerns.
“If a staff (member) didn’t pay the bill, we can still get the money directly from his paycheck, whereas it’s hard to track down students,” Anthes said. “We also don’t want any troubles, such as getting sued.”
The mechanic shop is in the G Tower basement. Faculty and staff can call 314-644-9290 between 7:30 and 8 a.m. or 9 a.m. and noon Monday through Friday for an appointment.