How West-MEC is Transforming Automotive Education
Writer Shannon Severson
Thunk, click, thud… When your vehicle fails, the day’s mission suddenly shifts to finding a qualified technician — and that’s becoming increasingly challenging.
According to MarketSource data, the United States faces a critical shortage of qualified technicians — nearly 613,000 shy of meeting current demand. This is due, among other factors, to retirement of many skilled technicians and declining vocational education opportunities in high schools. Arizona, with its exploding population, is one of the top states with opportunities for vocational graduates.
At its state-of-the-art Northeast Campus in North Phoenix, West-MEC is reversing this trend. The school equips students for in-demand, well-paying careers across multiple disciplines — from medical and veterinary sciences to aviation, welding, HVAC and automotive technology.
Building Tomorrow’s Technicians
Instructors Randy Golding and Chris Wethington lead more than 90 students in the state’s only Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) Education Foundation-accredited automotive service technology program in a building outfitted with carefully organized, industry-recommended tools and diagnostic equipment. Vehicles await repair with hoods raised, while the immaculate facility reflects the program’s professional standards.
“We have vehicles and training aids they can take apart and put back together again so that when it becomes real, they’re ready,” explains Golding, an eight-year West-MEC veteran. “They can break this stuff here [as part of the learning process].”
The scene reflects the level of professionalism, leadership and pride of ownership instilled in these high school juniors and seniors. The program has earned recognition from both local dealer service managers and automotive industry executives, who have donated more than $1 million worth of equipment and vehicles.
“We work really well with industry members,” says Golding. “Toyota has been our No. 1 supporter, not only at corporate but also with the dealerships, along with Ford and Subaru, who provide our program with vehicles and support. The Penske Automotive Group has realized the quality of our students, too. It’s really nice to say that I have students working at Lamborghini, BMW, Porsche and NASCAR.
“When we get the industry involved, we make it as real as possible. To help our students prepare, we host mock interviews and job shadowing opportunities. During the mock interviews, there’s a rubric: How was your handshake? How did you present yourself? These are real hiring managers who speak to them, and they’re looking for who’s next for job placement.”
Wethington points out that the two-year program brings clarity for students because it’s an excellent representation of a career in automotive technology. The program maintains an 85% to 87% job placement rate for seniors, with others going on to college or the military.
“Some have a moment where they realize, ‘This is not for me,’” he says. “By senior year, you only have kids who absolutely want to be here.”
Wethington and Golding have seen students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) and 504 plans, or those who were not thriving academically, blossom when they work with their hands, learning by doing.
“I’m seeing students with IEPs and they’re just killing it here,” Golding says. “We have young people who struggle in an academic setting; they come here and this is where all their academics come alive. If you want to teach them how to do research papers, have them search how to take apart an engine or find out what this code means — in repairing vehicles, we solve for X, and when aligning a vehicle, it’s all angles.”
Both instructors hope more high schools will direct students to West-MEC, which is part of the public education system. Students can earn dual-enrollment credits for college classes, and the instructors have seen how the programs put young people on the fast track to a successful life.
“Some of our students are making $120,000 to $130,000,” Golding notes. “They’re 18 or 19 years old and talking about buying homes. We are blessed to provide these opportunities, and it extends beyond automotive. The Northeast campus is adding welding and precision manufacturing programs, with graduates eligible for positions at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company starting at $18 to $19 an hour.”
Driving Change
Wethington says the career technical student organization he advises is reaching out to the community in its own charitable way. The young technicians raised funds to purchase a 1998 Honda Accord for $800. They will work on it all year, joining forces with the students in the collision repair and refinishing program to restore the vehicle and donate it to a family in need through Fresh Start Women’s Foundation, a local charity.
“Fresh Start supports women facing difficult situations,” Wethington explains. “These might be women who were abandoned, abused, single mothers or widows with children. Our students embraced the opportunity to help, partnering with Fresh Start to complete the car’s restoration by March, with a donation ceremony planned for May.”
To fund the project, students organized multiple fundraisers including a car wash, sales of specially designed T-shirts and a restaurant night. They plan to host a pancake and hot cocoa breakfast fundraiser this semester to purchase additional parts.
At press time, Wethington had four of this year’s seniors interview at a luxury dealership in North Scottsdale. All four were likely to be hired while still finishing high school and will become candidates for the dealership’s investment of up to $30,000 per student to complete a master technician program at Universal Technical Institute, catapulting them into the top tier of auto technicians.
For Wethington, a veteran of the automotive repair industry, the program’s success represents a direct response to years of employer complaints about technician shortages.
“My question to them was, ‘What are you doing about it?’” he says. “Now, I can shape these students’ foundational skills before they enter the industry. I’m teaching them how to clean and do the grunt work. Through this, they understand ownership better. They gain confidence and leadership here. They decide where they want to go from here and how they’re going to accomplish that.”
Racing to Success
While many graduates launch directly into automotive careers at local dealerships and garages, others, like Caden Lazurek, have even bigger dreams.
Lazurek, a junior at Boulder Creek High School in Anthem, is in his first year of the program and plans to work for NASCAR someday. He especially likes rebuilding engines.
“Rebuilding engines was the first unit of the year,” Lazurek says. “It’s always interested me — engine parts and what can go wrong. I’m interested in performance mods and going fast. I’m learning the basic internals of the engines and all the things that make it work. Long term, I’d like to build fast cars myself.”
With his sights set on colleges in the Carolinas for a degree in automotive engineering, one of the highlights of the program was attending a NASCAR race at Phoenix Raceway with his class.
“We got pit passes and talked to owners and mechanics,” he says. “Some have been there for 25 years, and they know all the ins and outs. You have to have a lot of experience to get into it. Usually, you have to start at a low level, but at West-MEC, we already know a lot about how to make repairs.”
Arizona State University freshman and West-MEC graduate Andrew Lingnau agrees with Lazurek on the value of the program. He’s pursuing a degree in cybersecurity and applied computing.
“I went through automotive school because I like working with my hands and physical labor,” he explains. “I’ve always been interested in cars and how they work, but I never knew the theory behind it and how the mechanical portion worked. I loved all of the program, but if I had a favorite, it was probably automatic and manual transmissions.”
Lingnau has saved thousands on car repairs and has worked on friends’ and teachers’ cars for extra money. He even has his own project that Wethington helped him begin.
“I do drag racing and have a race car that Mr. Wethington helped me start building at West-MEC. The skills I learned transferred to that car, and I’m still building it. Mr. Wethington did a phenomenal job teaching us.”
Lingnau is eyeing opportunities with the Phoenix Police Department or the U.S. military, where he could apply his technical skills to their vehicle fleets. He recommends that anyone interested in learning a vocational skill consider West-MEC.
“It’s better than any elective unless your school already has vocational classes,” he says. “If you have the chance to go to West-MEC, you should do it.”
As the automotive industry evolves, the West-MEC automotive service technology program continues to innovate. The program is already working with electric vehicle manufacturers and constructing a dedicated EV service facility while developing cutting-edge curriculum. For Valley students seeking pathways to successful careers, West-MEC’s innovative programs prove that hands-on experience and forward-thinking education can transform lives.
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