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Teacher Mike Rainey tries to keep his students in the real world at all times.
As a teacher of collision repair at the Limestone County Career Technical Center, he wants his charges to learn what will help lead to jobs at body shops, parts stores or other auto body venues.
He wants parents and prospective students to know that courses offered at the Career Tech Center — whether it be collision repair, computer technology, food service or carpentry — will prepare youths for real jobs.
It can also prepare them for college or the military, should they choose those avenues.
On Tuesday, the Career Tech Center held an open house in which students, parents and members of the community could see just what goes on at the school off Sanderfer Road near Athens. The open house was held to mark “Work Force Development Month.”
Among those who spoke Tuesday were Mickey Glass, Tech Center director; Limestone County Schools Superintendent Dr. Tom Sisk; Athens City Schools Superintendent Dr. Orman Bridges Jr., and Tom Hill, president of the Limestone County Economic Development Association.
Following the ceremony, these leaders, other leaders and the general public toured the facility from 1 to 2 p.m. Among the classes offered at the center are building construction, design drafting, HVACR, welding, precision machining, electrical, information systems, business management, food and beverage service, cosmetology, graphic arts, health science, automotive technology, power equipment and collision repair.
At some of their stops, they found students bent over a vehicle in the automotive technology class.
Student William Landers said he has been repairing automobiles at the Career Tech Center for two years now and loves it.
“I’m a car nut,” Landers said. “I have been around cars all my life, and my parents always had sports cars. I like it.”
Dustin Johnson, who has been in the program for three years, believes his training will help him in whatever he chooses to do.
“It’s an opportunity for me to use my skills and to learn more,” he said.
Although Johnson plans to join the military, and hopefully become a military policeman, he believes he will still use the skills he learned at the Tech Center.
Cesar Soto, a senior from East Limestone and a third-year collision repair student, was removing a bumper from a car during the tour. In collision repair, students learn how to fix automobiles that have been damaged by crash or the elements.
“It’s fun,” he said of the paint dust and remetaling. “I get to work on different types of vehicles and I also get to help first-year-students.”
When he graduates in May, Soto hopes to parlay what he has been learning into a career.
That should not be a problem, Rainey said.
Of the seven who graduated from his class last year, four obtained jobs in auto body repair or parts sales and two went on to college, he said.
Rainey said the Career Tech Center has something for everybody and not necessarily the people you might think. He said a female, Tori Golden, has been among his best students in collision repair. In addition to winning state and national awards, she landed a job as an automobile restorer in Huntsville, Rainey said.
There are many success stories associated with Tech Center students. It is a place where they can count on getting the hands-on experience that is sometimes lacking in the typical classroom.
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Related Photos
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Ronnie Petty, right, and William Landers test automobile components in the automotive repair class at the Limestone County Career Technical Center. The Tech Center held an open house Tuesday to mark “Work Force Development Month.” Both young men said they enjoy the classes, which provide practical, hands-on experience. News Courier/Jean Cole
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Cesar Soto, of East Limestone, removes a bumper from a car that will soon be repainted. Soto is a third-year student in the Tech Center’s collision repair class. News Courier/Jean Cole
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