MEMPHIS, Tenn. — AutoZone, the nation’s leading auto parts retailer, has announced the distribution of the “AutoZone Future Technician Scholarship.” The $10,000 automotive industry-focused scholarship was divided incrementally to gold, silver and bronze medal winners of the SkillsUSA National Championships Automotive Service Technology competition held in Kansas City, Mo., on June 23, 2004.
“The AutoZone Future Technician Scholarship was created to provide incentive to high school students to seek post-secondary educations, to help build automotive career option awareness and to infuse highly qualified professionals into the work force,” said Steve Odland, chairman, president and CEO of AutoZone. “One of the most effective ways to achieve those goals is to support and cultivate educational opportunities for future automotive professionals. This scholarship gives us the opportunity to make a profoundly positive impact on the future of the automotive industry.”
Contestants in the Automotive Service Technology contest demonstrated their ability to perform jobs and skills based on the task list outlined by the National Institute of Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) and the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation (NATEF). The eleven workstations consisted of on-vehicle simulations, bench and component testing and finally, a comprehensive written exam.
AutoZone Future Technician Scholarship Winners included:
Gold Medal – Don Lewis of Capital High School in Helena, Mont.;
Silver Medal – Jonathan Daniel of North Lamar High School in Paris, Texas;
Bronze Medal – Nathan Walker of Tupelo Lee Career Technical Center in Tupelo, Miss.;
“We are very pleased to associate with AutoZone in creating this scholarship,” said Eric Gearhart, SkillsUSA’s director of Business and Industry Partnerships. “As an official sponsor, AutoZone continues to demonstrate that corporate citizenship is alive and thriving. We need to revitalize technical education in this country and AutoZone is stepping up to the challenge.”
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