To celebrate the continued success of the Industry Training Alliance, the I-CAR Education Foundation has declared December as I-CAR Industry Training Alliance month.

To recognize December as Alliance month, the Foundation will be offering online meetings for members of the industry to learn more about the Alliance and how it affects schools, students, and businesses. The complimentary informational sessions will be offered at 2:00 p.m. CDT every Wednesday in December. Please contact the Foundation to sign up for one of these sessions by calling 888.722.3787.

The Industry Training Alliance was developed to optimize the efforts of industry training organizations and career and technical schools and colleges to provide the collision industry with a coordinated and comprehensive training curriculum. Kelvin Brown, a collision repair instructor at Bevill State Community College in Sumiton, Alabama believes the Alliance has done just that for his school. "The Alliance has improved the Auto Body program here at Bevill State Community College," says Brown. "The fact that the schools can teach the same curriculum as I-CAR and that students receive credit for the I-CAR points helps to better prepare them for a career in the collision industry. The fact that they graduate with the knowledge and skills required to deal with today's repair processes and procedures along with I-CAR points makes them more marketable and immediately valuable to their first employer." Bevill State Community College has been a member of the Alliance since May 2004.

Admitting its first school into membership in 2001, the Alliance has directly affected the education of over 2,000 students and is continuing to grow in size and in the benefits offered to students. The 119 participating Alliance schools are located across the United States and Canada. These schools vary in size and program length ranges from nine months to four years. Schools can have secondary, post-secondary, or both secondary and post-secondary programs.

"The Alliance is a great way to introduce students to the industry and the importance of life-long training to truly be a professional," said Greg Brink, a collision repair instructor at Kishwaukee College in Malta, Illinois.

As a participant in the Alliance, students have the option of earning I-CAR points for the education they receive in the career and technical school or college environment. Upon graduation, the student or their employer may apply for those points for a nominal processing fee. Students are encouraged to use these points as a resumé builder when applying for employment, to achieve their Platinum Individual designation, and to help their employer earn and maintain the Gold Class Professionals designation. Over the past five years, students from these 119 schools have applied for over 45,000 points. An Alliance school graduate could enter a workplace with anywhere from one to 70 I-CAR points, depending upon how many points a school builds into their curriculum.

The I-CAR Education Foundation is continually accepting applications from career and technical schools and colleges to become members of the Alliance. To become a member, a career and technical school or college must use the I-CAR Live curriculum (formerly known as the Enhanced Delivery) offered by the Foundation. Additionally, schools must either have instructors attend an Instructor Qualification Workshop (IQW) or the school's collision repair program must be ASE-certified to the NATEF standards or provide documentation to support proof of a Canadian Provincial apprentice program. Instructors must also successfully complete at least one Instructor Training Evaluation (ITE) online prior to school admittance into the Alliance.

For a list of schools participating in the Alliance or to download a school application, please visit the Foundation web site at www.ed-foundation.org or call 888.722.3787, Ext. 282.

The I-CAR Education Foundation has released a video serving as an online resource on how to host a fundraising golf tournament. These golf tournaments are designed to help I-CAR volunteer committees raise funds for career and technical schools and colleges as well as the Education Foundation.

"I think it's important that the collision industry host events like golf tournaments for the Education Foundation," said Rick Tuuri, I-CAR Director of Business Development and North American Operations. "It raises awareness at the local level which I think is essential. People need to get involved locally to solve the problems that the industry has with regards to bringing in more trained technicians."

Golf tournaments support the Foundation's Mission to attract entry-level candidates and assist in preparing them for careers in the collision industry. By working with the Foundation, the funds raised from golf tournaments benefit local career and technical schools and colleges by providing them with much needed assistance in the form of curriculum, props, consumables and simulators, as well as scholarships.

The I-CAR Tech Centre held their second annual golf outing on August 16, 2006, hosting a record number of over 100 golfers and raising thousands of dollars to better the future of the collision industry. Coordinator and I-CAR Technical Development Manager Jason Bartanen said, "Conducting a golf outing is a great way to support the I-CAR Education Foundation and local career and technical schools and colleges. These outings offer a great way to network with other collision industry professionals while making an impact on a young adult's future in the collision industry. Organizing an event like this is not only rewarding, but also a lot of fun. This video and the accompanying resources are excellent tools to get started organizing golf tournaments in communities throughout the U.S. and Canada."

Tuuri echoes Bartanen's comments, "Hosting a golf tournament is a terrific way to raise money, meet new friends, network with old ones, and have a lot of fun in the process. The time invested up front is well worth the return and the money raised goes to a worthy cause."

The interactive video and additional planning tools and resources are available for download on the I-CAR Education Foundation web site at www.ed-foundation.org.

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