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Peoria Students Claim State Title at Ford/AAA Competition
Students earn $50,000 in scholarships, advance to national finals

GLENDALE COMMUNITY COLLEGE HOSTS THE 63RD FORD ASSET 
(AUTOMOTIVE STUDENT SERVICE EDUCATION TRAINING) 2012 COMPLETION

By Bette Sharpe Glendale Daily Planet

Two Centennial High School students from Peoria earned the title of Arizona’s top high school auto technicians after winning the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills State Finals on Friday, May 4. Led by their instructor Steve Maish, Eric Stover and David Mora will go on to represent Arizona in the National Finals this summer against other state titleholders from across the country. 

As the first place team, Stover and Mora won scholarships valued at more than $50,000 each to automotive programs across the country, including the Ford ASSET program at Glendale Community College and Universal Technical Institute in Phoenix. The second place team, Chanse Haines and Tanner Wolverton from Flowing Wells High School were awarded more than $25,000 to automotive programs, while the third place team, Matthew Artman  and George Vlassis from Safford High School were each awarded more than $15,000 to fund their automotive education.

“As the automotive technologies evolve, AAA understands the need for bright young minds to enter the industry,” said Don Nunnari, vice president of automotive services for AAA Arizona. “AAA is honored to help jumpstart the automotive education and training of aspiring technicians through this annual competition.”

Here is how it  unfolded...

Ten teams of two high school students from around the state were competed for scholarship money and the title of America’s Next Top Auto Technician in the state finals of the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Glendale Community College's (GCC) main campus, 6000 W. Olive Ave., Glendale.  This year a record number of Arizona students took the qualifying examination, 1348.  There are millions of dollars available in scholarship money and lots of recognition.

 

The competition began weeks before the actual hands-on competition began on Friday, May 4.  Team members and their instructors attended a Get Acquainted Dinner on Thursday, May 3 at the Thunderbird School of Global Management.  The well organized event contained a mandatory contest overview for students and instructors.  So all would be ready for Friday morning. 

 

The hands-on contest started early on Friday, May 4 with a 6:30 a. m. breakfast.

  The 90 minute contest begin at 9:15 a. m. with opening kick off remarks by Glendale Mayor Scruggs.  Following Mayor Scruggs, GCC president Dr. Irene Kovala spoke.

 

And then, Glendale Mayor Scruggs gave the ten teams of two their starting instructions, "gentleman, start your engines, if you can".  The junior and senior high school students began to diagnosis and fix the problems or the "bugs" deliberately planted in each of the ten new 2012 Ford Fusions cars.  Each Fusion had the same "bugs".

 

The twenty students kept their cools throughout the morning.  Under the same tent as the students and their cares were all sorts of media reporters with cameras, judges and officials.  Instructors and family members were instructed not to be inside the tent during the competition.  Each team had a judge who held a box, who usually stood in front of the test car.  Inside the boxes were parts that were the  clues/answers to solving (fixing) the problematic "bugs". 

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3709.

As teams discover the "bug" that needed to be fixed, they checked with a judge for the replacement part.
Here Lane B. Butler and Luis P. Gloria confer with the judges.

The teams worked together and as they uncover the "bugs", one or both would check with their judge for the replacement part or parts.  When the team completed a check sheet, which indicated that the planted "bugs" were diagnosed and fixed, the two-person team and their instructor could drive their car to the final judging area.  Sometimes however, the "bugs" were fixed, but the car would not start. 

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3730.

When a "bug" is fixed "bug" is checked off the list.

 

Once at in the final judging area, the car was in the hands of the judges.  Just because a team was the first to start and drive to the final judging area, did not mean they were in first place.  Here each vehicle was inspected for accuracy and workmanship.  The judges, via a one-way conversation, went over what they found with each car's teams. 

 

Arizona winners receive scholarships to automotive programs, such as the Ford ASSET program at GCC.  Don Davies Glendale Community College ASSET Coordinator.  The Ford ASSET program has been at GCC for 18 years. 

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3685.

Glendale Community College ASSET Coordinator, Don Davies remarked that "everyone is a winner".  And that there are "a lot of jobs out there and more coming."  Good news for the new high school graduates and their parents.

 

        “We are honored to host the 63rd Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition

        at Glendale Community College,” said Dr. Irene Kovala, president of GCC.

        “We couldn't ask for a better organization to partner with in producing a

        competition that embodies our college's mission of community involvement,

        career training and commitment to academic excellence.”

 

        “This competition aims to put aspiring auto techs on a career path that will

        foster education, development and ultimately equip them with the necessary

        tools to respond to increasingly sophisticated auto repair challenges,” said Don

        Nunnari, vice president of automotive services for AAA Arizona.

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE STUDENTS, THEIR INSTRUCTORS AND THEIR SCHOOLS

 

Based on scores from an online qualifying exam, the top-ranked automotive technology students from the following schools were selected to compete in Friday’s competition:

The 2012 results of the competition are as follows:

Place	High School	City	Instructor	Students
1st	Centennial	Peoria	Steve Maish	Eric Stover David Mora
2nd	Flowing Wells	Tucson	Jerrad Mcmurrich	Chanse Haines Tanner Wolverton
3rd	Safford	Safford	Ed Taylor	Matthew Artman George Vlassis
4th	Prescott	Prescott	Mickey Chaney	Dylan Van Demark Jay Knapp
5th	Mountain View	Tucson	David Damiani	Jeremiah Butler Myles Hall
6th	Sahuaro	Tucson	Robert Ramsey Jr.	Sebastian Orozco James Baxter
7th	East Valley Institute of Technology (EVIT)	Mesa	Dan Christman	Fernando Hernandez Ryan Ozment
8th	Kofa	Yuma	Norm Champagne	Ezequiel Lopez Austin Roden
9th	Mountain View	Tucson	Brian Parag	Lane Andrews Luis Gloria
10th	Sunrise Mountain	Peoria	Scott Hereder	Mark Shaffer Daniel Okuda

Stover, Mora and their instructor will travel to Dearborn, Mich., to compete in the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills National Finals, June 10-12 on the front lawn of Ford World Headquarters. At the National Finals, Stover and Mora will compete for additional scholarship money and the chance to kick start their automotive careers with a job shadow experience with premier racing team Roush Fenway Racing.

---

        "We hope many of these students go on to enroll in the Ford ASSET auto

        technician program at Glendale Community College, where they can earn an

        associate's degree, work inside the service department at a Ford

        dealership and earn Ford's specialized technical credentials," said Mark

        Witthar, Phoenix regional manager for Ford Motor Company.

 

The Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills (ASSET) competition tests students’ automotive knowledge, workmanship and problem-solving abilities with a written test as well as a race against the clock to diagnose and properly repair intentionally “bugged” Ford vehicles.  Ford and AAA are dedicated to the competition as part of their commitment to the future of automotive service in America.

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3719.

Glendale Mayor Scruggs and Glendale Community College gave opening remarks at the 2012 Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition.  Glendale Community College hosted the 63^rd Ford/AAA Student Auto Skill competition.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3696.

Glendale Mayor Scruggs told the twenty junior and senior students in the Student Auto Skills competition.  "Congratulations to you for getting to this point."  Mayor Scruggs' father worked in an auto parts department and has faun memories of going to work with her dad.  She went on to say that the young mechanics are "lifesavers in a way", since there is no real transit system in the valley.  Residents depend on their cars for reliable transportation.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3738.

AAA General Manager, Emergency Road Service William Gowitzka.  Mr. Gowitzka awarded the winning teams their certificates and trophy.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3795.

William Gowitzka, AAA General Manager presented the certificates and trophies.

 

 

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3703.

Myles E. Hall of Mountain View High School (Tucson) looking for and fixing the planet "bugs" in the new 2012 Ford Fusions as part of the 2012 Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills. Contest at Glendale Community College, Friday, May4, 2012. No tool box is complete without a computer with ever changing software programs.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3741.

Teamwork. Names?

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3706.

Myles E. Hall and Jeremiah b. Butler work as a team to find and fix the planted car "bugs".  
Each 2012 Ford Fusion will be returned to the dealership and will be checked carefully
 before the are ready for the public.

 

 

 
Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no.3710. name?

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3724

 Luis P. Gloria from Mountain View High School in Tucson.

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3704 name?

THE AWARDS -   2012 ARIZONA STATE FINALS

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3771.

Flowing Wells High School accepted the trophy for highest examination score.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3773.

Sunrise Mountain High School: 10th Place

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3776.

Mountain View High School: 9th Place.

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3778.

Kofa High School: 8th Place.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3780.

East Valley Institute of Technology: 7th Place

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3783.

Sahuaro High School: 6th Place.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3785.

Mountain View High School team on Myles E. Hall and Jeremiah B. Butler took 5th Place.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3788.

Mountain View High School team on Myles E. Hall and Jeremiah B. Butler took 5th Place.  
Instructor David Damiani is on the far right.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3790.

Prescott High School: 4th Place.

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3792.

Safford High School: 3rd Place.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3796.

Flowing Wells High School: 2nd Place.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3805

Centennial High School: 1st Place.  This team will be traveling to Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan this June to compete against the other two-person teams from the other states.  Good Luck.  Over 10,000 high school students competed for the opportunity to represent their school and their state.  Twelve million dollars in  scholarships is available and a job shadow experience with premier racing team Roush Fenway Racing.

William Gowitzka, AAA General Manager,  students ( not in order??)  David Mora and Eric Stover and Instructor Steve Maish

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3806 (alternate photo).

Centennial High School: 1st Place.  This team will be traveling to Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan this June to compete against the other two-person teams from the other states.  Good Luck.  Over 10,000 high school students competed for the opportunity to represent their school and their state.  Twelve million dollars in  scholarships is available and a job shadow experience with premier racing team Roush Fenway Racing.

William Gowitzka, AAA General Manager,  students ( not in order??)  David Mora and Eric Stover and Instructor Steve Maish

 

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3802.

Centennial High School: 1st Place.  This team will be traveling to Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan this June to compete against the other two-person teams from the other states.  Good Luck.  Over 10,000 high school students competed for the opportunity to represent their school and their state.  Twelve million dollars in  scholarships is available.

Students ( not in order??)  David Mora and Eric Stover and Instructor Steve Maish

 
Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3804-(alternate photo).

Centennial High School: 1st Place.  This team will be traveling to Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan this June to compete against the other two-person teams from the other states.  Good Luck.  Over 10,000 high school students competed for the opportunity to represent their school and their state.  Twelve million dollars in  scholarships is available.

Students ( not in order??)  David Mora and Eric Stover and Instructor Steve Maish

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3765.

Mitch Vogel and Emily Gray talk with Dr. Ronald D. Natale, II, GCC Vice president of Academic Affairs at lunch during the Ford/AAA Student Skills competition on Friday, May 4 on the GCC main campus.  Emily is graduating from the GCC ASSET program.  

 

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet. no. 3808.

Each student received some tools courtesy of NAPA to help start a much need box of tools.  Ryan Henesey, welcomes the "new talent and fresh faces" to the business.

 

Bette Sharpe/Glendale Daily Planet no. 3807.

Charles Kay, Admissions Representative for Lincoln College of Technology readies the many scholarships that were awarded to Arizona high school students from the Arizona State competition. 

As  the 2012 first place team, Stover and Mora won scholarships valued at more than $50,000 each to automotive programs across the country, including the Ford ASSET program at Glendale Community College and Universal Technical Institute in Phoenix.  They were not the only winners though... The second place team, Chanse Haines and Tanner Wolverton from Flowing Wells High School were awarded more than $25,000 to automotive programs, while the third place team, Matthew Artman  and George Vlassis from Safford High School were each awarded more than $15,000 to fund their automotive education.

And... if Centennial High School  team wins at the 2012 national level... They stand  a chance at the  nearly $12 million in scholarships and prizes offered by the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills nationwide automotive technology competition.

BUT WAIT... THERE IS MORE!

"This year’s Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills national finalist will not only be competing for the national championship title but also for an experience of a life-time: A seven day trip to Charlotte, North Carolina and Daytona Beach, Florida to shadow Wood Brothers Racing as they prepare the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series FORD/Motorcraft 21 car to race at the legendary Daytona International Speedway, the location where their driver Trevor Bayne became the youngest driver to ever win the Daytona 500."

National Finals Grand Prize is a job shadow with NASCAR's Wood Brothers Racing and Trevor Bayne

http://autoskills.aaa.com/c/document_library/get_file?uuid=ac6b7bee-869f-4ef2-94cf-df0f9ba3ac91&groupId=11918

About the Competition

All participants begin with an online exam. The 10 highest scoring two-person teams are selected to advance to the state finals for the hands-on competition, where each team must correctly diagnose and repair a deliberately bugged vehicle.

Online exam and hands-on competition scores determine each state’s championship team that will go on to compete in the National Finals held at the Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn, Mich., each June.

At the National Finals, competitors take a 100-question written exam before facing off in a timed competition during which they must diagnose and repair a different set of bugs in a different Ford vehicle. The National Title goes to the team with the best combined written test and hands-on competition scores.

As part of their commitment to the future of automotive service industry in America, AAA and Ford Motor Co. are dedicated to the annual competition. Founded in 1949, the event has been sponsored by various organizations committed to quality auto service. AAA has served as co-sponsor since 1984, and Ford Motor Co. began its partnership in 1994.

About the Industry

The Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition is just one of the many ways in which AAA and Ford work with the automotive industry and local communities to build awareness of career opportunities in the automotive service industry and ensure development of a quality workforce that is equipped to respond to increasingly sophisticated auto repair challenges.

Advancements in automobile safety, fuel management and comfort have led to an increasing reliance on computers and electronic components that make cars operate efficiently. Today’s auto technicians must be well-educated and continue training to stay on the cutting edge of advances in computer and electronic technology. They also must be skilled in all aspects of mechanical repair procedures and knowledgeable about service intervals and similar maintenance requirements on a wide variety of vehicles.

For more information, photos, video and updates on the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition, please visit the event’s Facebook page.