TROY, MI — The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employment and Training Administration has awarded $2.2 million for the expansion of the Automotive Youth Educational Systems (AYES) automotive service technician training initiative.

AYES is a business and education partnership of 14 automotive manufacturers, National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), state dealer associations and state departments of education or labor, that work together to provide training and educational through 410 secondary high schools in 45 states.

Up until now, the AYES initiative could only be delivered to less than a third of the high school students in the nation. With the aid and funding of the DOL grant, AYES plans to develop an on-line process within dealerships that will deliver the training curriculum and process to a much wider audience. The DOL grant will also help develop an on-line process for other learners who seek to pursue a new career as an automotive service technician.

The AYES process includes not only the basic studies, but an emphasis on increased academics, SkillsUSA Professional Development Program for employability skills, and safety and environmental training as well, according to AYES President and CEO Larry Cummings

“AYES combines classroom, lab, experiential training as well as employability training with life skills, which creates a very important edge for today’s career learners,” said Cummings.

“The 14 manufacturers of AYES and NADA developed a business and education partnership that has educated and provided significant experiential training for over 7,500 new entry level technicians in over 5,000 dealerships. This grant will allow AYES to deliver its highly valued initiatives directly to dealerships in every city in the nation, while the school based initiative will continue to serve the top 100 automotive markets in the nation.”

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