CTC’s auto tech program receives ASE accreditation

Following a “thorough, strategic review,” the Cape Girardeau Career and Technology Center’s automotive technology program received National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) Program Accreditation at the Maintenance and Light Repair level.

According to CTC automotive technology instructor Michael Blyzes, receiving accreditation opens the door for students to receive opportunities for further training, college credits and becoming credentialed at the student level.

“If they take this program that's accredited, they will have the opportunity at some post-secondary schools to have articulated credits,” Blyzes said. “Basically, if they take this class and they pass it, they can go to a school like Rankin or UNLH, for example, and they'll already have credits at school.”

CTC director Brock Crowley said the program’s accreditation improves CTC’s ability to partner with businesses and industry leaders, allowing students to work with equipment and programs they may not otherwise have access to.

“Business and industry knows that we're an accredited institution and we're following those specific guidelines,” Crowley said. “They probably understand and know that, now, our students are probably meeting a certain standard which makes it more enticing for them to partner with us to say, ‘We know that students that are coming through the CTC are coming through an ASC accredited program,’ which makes it better for them because they know exactly what we're teaching our students.”

CTC has already partnered with manufacturers such as General Motors, Ford and Toyota for their specific training programs. As a part of its partnership with GM and Rankin Technical College in St. Louis, CTC’s auto tech program was given two late-model vehicles — a GMC Acadia and a GMC 1500 — for students to work on.

“There's a lot of advantages to being accredited,” Blyzes said. “Ultimately, accreditation means that you've made a commitment, you got your program to a certain standard and you're committing to a certain standard where students are coming out with a certain level of experience or expertise.”

To meet accreditation requirements, schools must meet ASE Education Foundation standards that are evaluated through a five-step process. Schools first become familiar with the accreditation program standards, followed by conducting a self-evaluation of their program. The Foundation then reviews applications and self-evaluations, informing schools if any improvements need to be made before conducting an on-site evaluation. Once requirements are met, the program receives accreditation for five years.

There are four levels of accreditation — Maintenance and Light Repair, Automobile Service Technology, and Master Automobile Service and Technology. Each level is determined by how many hours of classroom and lab instruction activities the course provides. At the Maintenance and Light Repair level, the ASE Education Foundation requires 540 hours of instruction, while the Automobile Service Technology level requires 840 and the Master level requires 1,200.

For more information about ASE accreditation visit www.aseeducationfoundation.org/program-accreditation. For more information about the CTC’s automotive technology program visit www.capectc.org.