NRCC, CAR DEALERS DISCUSS JOINT TRAINING

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, February 16, 1993                   TAG: 9302160174
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-5   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: DUBLIN                                LENGTH: Short
NRCC, CAR DEALERS DISCUSS JOINT TRAINING
Forty-seven representatives from New River Community College and the New River Valley Dealers Association met last month to discuss ways that dealers and the college could work together more closely to ensure a steady supply of trained technicians for local car dealerships.
The meeting was part of the college's Technology Preparation program to help guarantee that the community college is serving its local industries, according to Helen Harvey, division chairwoman for technologies at New River.
Representatives from 13 car dealerships in the valley, concerned about the expense of sending mechanics out of state for training, discussed how the college's automotive technology program could provide national training seminars in the latest technologies.
The community college already has been the site of seminars by Chrysler, Ford, General Motors and Toyota. On its part, the college will seek donations of vehicles and engines for its training programs and job placement for its cooperative education students at local dealerships, according to college officials.
The auto technology program, which has grown in the last two years, received the highest certification last year from the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence in all mechanical areas, such as engine repair and brakes. Toyota also has designated the college's program as a training site.

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB