By Matt Petersonmatt.peterson@austindailyherald.com

JasonMerrittknowsaswell as anybodyhow tech-nology in the auto indus-try is constantlyevolving.The automotive servicestechnology instructor atRiverland CommunityCollege, alongwith fellowinstructor Olle Gladso, ishelping tomorrow’s autotechs forge theirways intofuture careers.“The good thing about

thisparticularcareerareais that it’snationaland it’sstandardized,” Merrittsaid. “... When you gothroughthisprogram,youcanworkanywhere in thiscountry,andtheneedisre-ally strong for qualifiedauto technicians.”Riverland’s automotive

program,which is held onthe Albert Lea campus, iscertified through the Na-tionalAutomotiveTechni-cians Education Founda-tion,sostudentswon’tsim-ply be grease-monkeyingaroundonoldbeaters.Stu-dent toolkitsarecomplete.“There are some inter-

esting things that our pro-gramhasthatyoudon’tseeat other programs,” Mer-ritt said.“Wewerethefirstin southernMinnesota toofferhybridtrainingonhy-bridcars.”Merritt addedmoreex-

citingnews: Theprogrammay be getting a ChevyVolt electric car, and stu-dents may soon be work-ingwith theWind and So-lar Energy program onsome studies.Forworking on today’s

moreintelligentcars,eachstudent gets a laptop inhisorhertoolkit,aswell.Withthat, they’ll learnhow thecomputertalkstodifferentcars and how to diagnose

problems. Many projectsmay involve a student’s orhisorher family’s car.“Itisaveryhands-on,in-

tensive course, and thatwaywehaveforeveryhourthatwould be spent in lec-ture and theory, threehours of hands-onwork,”Merritt said.

Program overviewBecause the program

accepts 25 students at atime, Merritt said regis-tration fills up quickly.Those looking at gettinginto the program shoulddo so soon, he urged.“They should be look-

ing at getting registeredbefore July 1,” Merrittsaid, and added thatmeans starting the ap-plication process imme-diately. Applications areprocessed as first-come,first-served.The program offers a

24-class, 69-credit diplo-ma and a 72-credit asso-ciate of applied sciencedegree. The majority ofclasses are automotive-service based, too. Thefirst five classes are gen-eral studies. After that,studentswill study over-all maintenance anddelve into more specificareas.“In one semester they

might be doing brakes

and suspension and en-gines, and thenext doingautomatic transmis-sions, ignition and elec-tronics,”Merritt said.

Real worldAbout15of every25stu-

dentswhobeginthecoursegraduate with their cre-dentials.Manyof thosestu-dents find jobs in the area,too.Merritt has seen it, ashehasbeenaninstructoratRiverlandfor13years.Andstudentswillhaveplentyofreal-world experiencewhen they enter thework-force, too. Among solvingproblems in theworkshop,students sometimes offerservices to the public. Be-cause April is Car CareMonth, they’ll offer helpthis Saturday atRiverlandinAlbertLea.“It’s totally free,” Mer-

ritt said. “We check overthe basic maintenancethingsthatsomeonemightnot be checking all thetime.”The studentswill work

in teams and provide freemaintenance inspectionstoanybodywhoarrivesbe-tween10a.m.to2p.m.Eachcarownerwill thenreceivea full report about his orhervehicle.For more information

about Riverland Commu-nityCollege’sAutomotiveService program and ap-plications, visitwww.riverland.edu/auto.

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Riverland backs careers in cars

Nowadays, laptop computers are a necessity in the automotive service industry. Riverland students' tool kits come equippedwith them. Photos provided

LEFT: Riverland Community College's automotive service technology program is held on the Albert Lea campus. About 25 studentsattend classes within the program each semester. RIGHT: Automotive technology students gather supplies for the food shelf.

“It is a very hands-on, intensivecourse, and that way we havefor every hour that would bespent in lecture and theory,

three hours of hands-on work.”-Jason Merritt, Riverland

automotive program instructor