Cardinal senior first accepted in premier Ford technician training program
Preston Ford Superstore is throwing its support behind a one-of-a-kind automotive training program that combines classroom instruction with hands-on experience in a local Ford/Lincoln dealership.
On March 7, Pat Preston, owner of Preston Ford Superstore, in Burton, presented Kitty McCarthy from Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C) with a check for $20,000 in support of the Ford ASSET program at Tri-C.
Tri-C Automotive Technology will welcome 16 students to the Ford ASSET program beginning with the fall 2018 semester.
Cardinal High School senior Zack Folk, of Middlefield, is the first to be officially accepted into the premier Ford technician-training program, which provides students a paid internship that allows them to earn while they learn.
In 21 months, students graduate with full Ford training, including diesel, and an Associate of Applied Science degree in Automotive Technology, Ford ASSET, along with two years paid work experience.
In this paid apprenticeship program, students attend classes for eight weeks and then spend eight weeks at their sponsoring Ford or Lincoln dealership honing the skills they just learned.
For eight weeks, Folk will take the Ford ASSET classes at Tri-C during the day and then work at Preston in the afternoons, evenings and on weekends.
He will apply what he’s learning in the classroom to his work for Preston and hopefully earn a job with Preston after the classes have been completed.
Folk, who also attends Auburn Career Center, currently holds a 4.0 GPA and recently won the SkillsUSA contest in Automotive Technology.
