HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL – March 12, 2012 – The Collision Repair Education Foundation’s 2012 Ultimate Collision Education Makeover $50,000 school grant application is now available online and two grants (one secondary, one post-secondary) will be awarded this year. The application is available at the Education Foundation’s web site (www.CollisionEducationFoundation.org), and must be completed by August 31, 2012. Instructors are advised to begin the application early and industry professionals are encouraged to get involved with the Makeover grant by working with their local school’s collision instructors to help them apply.
The winning schools will be announced during SEMA 2012. As part of the Makeover grant application, schools provide their own, itemized wish list, which can include any tools, supplies, and equipment that are needed by the collision program. Each of the winning schools will have their $50,000 wish list fulfilled through the Collision Repair Education Foundation and industry donors/supporters.
The goal of the Ultimate Collision Education Makeover grant is to honor a school that has been doing an outstanding job in educating students in collision repair, but needs some financial assistance to improve their program’s teaching materials and equipment. With strained school budgets, the Education Foundation and industry supporters have the opportunity to bridge the program’s financial gap and to make a difference in the lives of the students studying collision repair.
The Ultimate Collision Education Makeover grant debuted in 2009 when Steel Center Area Vocational Technical School (Jefferson Hills, PA) was chosen as the recipient of the award. In 2010, the award went to Bridgerland Applied Technology College (Logan, UT) and in 2011, Applied Technology Center (Rock Hill, SC). As an added benefit to the program, the schools that applied for the 2009-2011 grant who did not win still benefited from the Ultimate Collision Education Makeover program by receiving various donated supplies, tools, and equipment.
The Ultimate Collision Education Makeover school grant and other collision student and school support opportunities provided by the Collision Repair Education Foundation are made possible through industry donations. If you are interested in getting involved with the Foundation and joining its efforts to support the future of the collision industry, please contact Foundation Associate Director of Development, Brandon Eckenrode at 847.463.5244 or Brandon.Eckenrode@ed-foundation.org.
