OC Students are Driven for Success
Alex
“There’s a lot of misconception that being a mechanic, you can’t make a good living. However, that’s not the case”, says Alex, “there is a lot of opportunity to make a lot of money in this field.” As a high school Senior, Alex competed in the OC Driven for Success Automotive competition. He placed 2nd and received a scholarship to attend an Orange County Community College. He now works at a dealership during the day and attends college classes at night. Alex started his career as an apprentice technician and has worked closely under a mentor technician to becoming an expert. Alex enjoys the variety in his workday, “I love what I do and I am excited to come to work every day. Not a lot of people can say that, but day is fun, my day is my hobby.”
Damien
Damien’s high school automotive instructor recommended him for a scholarship based on his keen interest in automotive technology and his excellent work ethic. Mr. Le advised that Damien spent many of his free hours at the high school shop, wanting to learn more and mentoring younger peers. Damien used his scholarship to attend Cypress College’s Toyota Technician Training & Education Network (T-TEN) program and landed a job.
Eddie
Eddie was a Junior in the High School Inc. Automotive Academy at Valley High School and started an internship at Fletcher Jones Motorcars. After a year, his supervisor came to him and said “Take a college class, pass it and you’re hired.” So he applied for an OC Driven for Success scholarship and used it to attend evening classes in Santa Ana College’s auto program. After being hired, he has enjoyed training under a Master Diagnostic Technician because it is challenging – and vehicle diagnosis is the reason he wanted to enter the industry.