Officials at Hartnell College in Salinas, Calif., are
recommending to the school’s board of trustees that they wipe out auto
collision classes due to weak enrollment.
According to The Californian, the program has been on
academic probation since 2007 because it didn’t have enough students completing
the coursework needed to graduate. Plus, there was a documented lack of jobs in
the collision industry.
The Californian said that out of 449 students enrolled in
at least one class in the program between 2006 and 2010, only six students
earned auto collision repair and refinishing certificates and degrees. On top
of that, a research consultant predicted that between 2010 and 2015, there would
only be 18 jobs available in the collision industry in the Salinas Valley.
A local
collision business owner, Javier Tostado, owner of Alpha Auto Collision Parts
and Glass in Salinas, expressed dismay about the possibility of the collision
classes going away.
"As a supplier, I haven’t seen a drop in
sales," Tostado told The Californian. "The industry speaks for
itself. There are so many autos out there. Who is going to fix them?"
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