Collision Repair Education Foundation

Collision School Career Readiness Benchmark

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Four Schools Benefit from Funds Raised During Global Finishing Solutions Golf Ball Drop Through Collision Repair Education Foundation

Hoffman Estates, Ill. (January 11, 2022) –

In October 2021, Global Finishing Solutions (GFS) partnered with famed custom car builder Ringbrothers and the Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF) for a sky-high fundraising event. While helicopter ball drops have been held in conjunction with golf tournaments to support CREF in the past, the idea of hosting a helicopter ball drop as a standalone event is a newer venture that has proven to be a successful way to support high school and college collision repair programs. Four Wisconsin schools will receive grants using the funds raised.

“GFS and Ringbrothers are longtime partners, and we both have a commitment to supporting collision repair education,” said Jim Faragher, GFS President. “To raise grant money through the Collision Repair Education Foundation with a unique event like this is very special. It is a great feeling to see students use the products we produce in their programs to gain additional knowledge of this industry.”

Each of the following schools will receive a $2,000 Benchmark Grant:
• Chippewa Valley Technical College (Eau Claire, WI)
• Fox Valley Technical College (Appleton, WI)
• Freedom High School (Freedom, WI)
• Germantown High School (Germantown, WI)

The Collision School Career Readiness Benchmark Grants recognize schools that excel at educating students in collision repair, but due to strained school budgets, the programs require additional financial assistance. Recipient schools use these funds to provide the tools, equipment and supplies necessary to enhance their students’ learning experience and elevate the caliber of their graduates, ensuring that graduates are prepared to successfully enter the workforce upon graduation. Applications for the 2022 Collision School Career Readiness Benchmark Grants will be available online in January 2022.
Industry members interested in getting involved and supporting the Collision Repair Education Foundation’s efforts to assist secondary and post-secondary collision repair training programs should contact Brandon Eckenrode, Managing Director, at 312-231-0258 or Brandon.Eckenrode@ed-foundation.org. Monetary donations can be made online.
The Collision Repair Education Foundation, founded in 1991, is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting collision repair educational programs, schools, and students to create qualified, entry-level employees and connect them with an array of career opportunities.

For information on how to donate to programs supported by the Education Foundation, visit us online at: www.CollisionEducationFoundation.org.
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If you would like more information about this topic, please email info@ed-foundation.org.

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COLLISION REPAIR EDUCATION FOUNDATION RECOGNIZES 121 CAREER PROGRAMS WITH COLLISION SCHOOL CAREER READINESS BENCHMARK

HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL – April 10, 2017- The Collision Repair Education Foundation announced it has recognized 121 schools with its new designation program called the “Collision School Career Readiness Benchmark” that was launched in 2016.

Under the new program developed by the Foundation, schools were classified into three tiers:
• Tier 1: Advanced,
• Tier 2: Proficient, or
• Tier 3: Developing.
The designation was determined by the Foundation based upon information provided by schools about the capabilities of their program on the Collision Repair Education Makeover grant application.

Last year, due to expanded financial and in-kind support from the industry, every school that completed an application received a grant to help them move to the next Tier or increase their capabilities. The program is currently accepting applications for 2017.

In 2016, nine schools received a Tier 1 designation, 80 schools achieved Tier 2 and 31 schools achieved Tier 3.
Schools are recognized at different levels based upon criteria that focus around the number of hours of instruction, curriculum in place, along with the tools, equipment, and supplies a school uses to prepare their students for employment in the collision industry.

Participation in the Makeover grant program provides schools with necessary items to help them advance to higher levels and expand their programs to best serve students and the industry. The goal is to help every school acquire the resources to eventually achieve a Tier 1: Advanced school designation.

“I want to congratulate all of the schools who participated in the Collision Repair Education Makeover grant program last year,” said Melissa Marscin, Collision Repair Education Foundation Director of Grant Programs. “In 2015, the Foundation Board of Trustees refocused the Foundation’s mission to not only provide grants and donations, but also to bridging the employment gap for students to the collision industry. Creating this new designation program enabled the Foundation to focus our grants to those items each school needs that will ultimately benefit students training for a career in the industry.”

A complete list of schools and their Tier designations is available below:
Tier 1
Aims Community College (Windsor, CO)
Central Community College (Hastings, NE)
Des Moines Area Community College (Ankeny, IA)
Eastfield College (Mesquite, TX)
Lex La-Ray Technical Center (Lexington, MO)
New England Institute of Technology (Warwick, RI)
Ranken Technical College (St. Louis, MO)
Ridgewater College (Willmar, MN)
Tennessee College of Applied Technology Livingston (Livingston, TN)

Tier 2
A.P. Brewer High School (Somerville, AL)
Area 30 Career Center (Greencastle, IN)
Athens Technical College (Athens, GA)
Baker College Flint Michigan (Flint, MI)
Bay Path Regional Vocational Technical High School (Charlton, MA)
Bellingham Technical College (Bellingham, WA)
Berks Career and Technology Center (Oley, PA)
Cerritos College (Norwalk, CA)
Chantilly Academy (Chantilly, VA)
Chippewa Valley Technical College (Eau Claire, WI)
Cleveland Community College (Shelby, NC)
C.S. Monroe Technology Center (Leesburg, VA)
College of Lake County (Grayslake, IL)
Dennis Technical Education Center (Boise, ID)
Dowell J Howard Center (Winchester, VA)
Dunwoody College of Technology (Minneapolis, MN)
Eden Career Technical Center (Ashville, AL)
Ehove Career Center (Milan, OH)
Erie 1 BOCES Kenton Career and Technical Center (Tonawanda, NY)
Erie Community College South (Orchard Park, NY)
Forbes Road Career and Technology Center (Monroeville, PA)
Forsyth Technical Community College (Winston Salem, NC)
Freedom High School (Freedom, WI)
Ft. Hayes Career Center (Columbus, OH)
Fayetteville Technical Community College (Fayetteville, NC)
Greater Lawrence Technical School (Andover, MA)
Greenville Technical College (Greenville, SC)
GST BOCES Coopers Education Center (Painted Post, NY)
Hennepin Technical College (Brooklyn Park, MN)
Highland Community College (Freeport, IL)
Hillsborough Community College (Tampa, FL)
Holmes High School (San Antonio, TX)
Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana Northeast Region (Fort Wayne, IN)
Kennedy King College (Chicago, IL)
Kingwood Park High School (Kingwood, TX)
Kishwaukee College (Malta, IL)
Lake Career and Technical Center (Camdenton, MO)
Lakeshore Technical College (Cleveland, WI)
Lehigh Career and Technical Institute (Schnecksville, PA)
Lewis and Clark Career Center (Saint Charles, MO)
Live Oaks Career Campus (Milford, OH)
Manatee Technical College (Brandenton, FL)
Marshall Technical School (Guntersville, AL)
Maxwell High School of Technology (Lawrenceville, GA)
Mercer County Technical Education Center (Princeton, WV)
Minot High School – Magic City Campus (Minot, ND)
Morrisville State College (Morrisville, NY)
Nichols Career Center (Jefferson City, MO)
North Dakota State College of Science (Wahpton, ND)
North Idaho College (Coeur d’Alene, ID)
North Technical High School (Florissant, MO)
Northern Neck Technical Center (Warsaw, VA)
Oxford Hills Technical School (Norway, ME)
Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical High School (Palmer, MA)
Pulaski Technical College (North Little Rock, AR)
Regional Career Technical Center (Ypsilanti, MI)
Renton Technical College (Renton, WA)
R.L. Turner High School (Carrollton, TX)
San Benito High School (San Benito, TX)
Seminole High School (Sanford, FL)
Shelby County College and Career Center (Columbiana, AL)
South Central College (North Mankato, MN)
South Technical High School (Sunset Hills, MO)
Southwest Wisconsin Technical College (Fennimore, WI)
Springfield Clark Career Technology Center (Springfield, OH)
Stanly Community College (Albemarle, NC)
Steel Center Area Vocational Tech (Jefferson, PA)
Susquehanna County Career Technology Center (Springville, PA)
Tazewell County Career and Technical Center (Tazewell, VA)
Tennessee College of Applied Technology (Chattanooga, TN)
Tennessee College of Applied Technology (Knoxville, TN)
Tennessee College of Applied Technology (Morristown, TN)
Texarkana College (Texarkana, TX)
Thomas A. Edison CTE High School (Jamaica, NY)
Texas State Technical College (Waco, TX)
University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton (Morrilton, AR)
Warren Tech (Lakewood, CO)
Warrensburg Area Career Center (Warrensburg, MO)
Washington County Joint Vocational School District (Marietta, OH)
Wenatchee Valley Tech (Wenatchee, WA)

Tier 3
Academy for Careers and Technology (Mullins, SC)
Atlanta Technical College (Atlanta, GA)
Big Sandy Community and Technical College (Paintsville, KY)
Career Center High School (Winston-Salem, NC)
Central Louisiana Technical Community College (Alexandria, LA)
Chester County Technical College High School Pennock’s Bridge Campus (West Grove, PA)
Delcastle Technical High School (Wilmington, DE)
Ellicottville Career and Technical Education Center (Ellicottville, NY)
Lake Technical College (Eustis, FL)
Lebanon Career and Technology Center (Lebanon, PA)
Lenoir Community College (Kinston, NC)
Livermore High School/Tri-Valley ROP (Livermore, CA)
Marengo Community High School District 154 (Marengo, IL)
Medford Vocational Technical High School (Medford, MA)
Monroe 2 Orleans BOCES (Spencerport, NY)
Moore Norman Technology Center (Norman, OK)
Northern Westmoreland Career and Technology Center (New Kensington, PA)
Norwalk High School (Norwalk, CA)
Paul M. Hodgson Technical High School (Newark, DE)
Portland Arts and Technology High School (Portland, ME)
Rolla Technical Institute (Rolla, MO)
Shawsheen Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School (Billerica, MA)
Silicon Valley Career Technical Education (San Jose, CA)
Tennessee College of Applied Technology (Paris, TN)
Tennessee College of Applied Technology (Shelbyville, TN)
Technical College High School Pickering (Phoenixville, PA)
Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology (Lancaster, PA)
Tidewater Community College (Chesapeake, VA)
United Technical Center (Clarksburg, WV)
US Grant Career Center (Bethel, OH)
Waite High School (Toledo, OH)