North Montco Auto Tech Students Place Second in Regional Competition

Two North Montco Technical Career Center (NMTCC) Automotive Technology students recently participated in the Greater Philadelphia Auto Technology Competition and earned the second-place award.

This competition has two components. 

• First, in December 2022, dozens of high school students competed in the written portion of the competition. The written exam covers the eight National Institute of Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) areas of the automobile, which are engine repair, engine performance, electrical/electronic systems, brakes, heating and air conditioning, suspension and steering, manual drive train, and axles and automatic transmissions. The two highest-scoring students from the top 12 schools qualified for the hands-on portion of the event.
• Second, the hands-on portion was held last week at the Automotive Training Center. During the hands-on portion, participants performed a multi-point inspection of a previously bugged vehicle and tested their knowledge at 10 workstations ranging from engine mechanical to communication skills.

Robert Knab (12^th grade, North Penn High School) and Troy Siegfried (12^th grade, Souderton Area High School) earned the top spaces for NMTCC during the written portion of the competition, giving them the chance to participate in the hands-on competition. During this hands-on competition, they placed second, earning many scholarships, awards, and prizes in the process.

Both students have been in NMTCC’s Automotive program with their teacher, Joseph Simes, for a few years. As a former graduate of NMTCC’s Automotive program, Simes understands the importance of this competition and the impact it can have on the students. He worked with the students to prepare them for the competition and even taught them how academics are integrated into their technical field. During one part of the competition, they used their math and English skills as they were required to write repair orders.

Knab and Siegfried were unsure of what to expect when they arrived at the competition. They were given worksheets with instructions at each station and had to follow the steps to complete the assigned tasks. Siegfriend felt the workstations were “very comprehensive,” while Knab added the workstations tested “how well you knew the work of an auto technician.” They felt their training at NMTCC helped prepare them for the tasks.

For winning second place, they earned multiple scholarships including a 100% tuition scholarship to Automotive Training Center, a 50% scholarship to both Universal Technical Institute and Lincoln Tech, and a scholarship from Ohio Technical College. In addition, they were awarded tool sets, toolboxes, and various swag.

Both students are overwhelmed by what they won and are now deciding what avenue they want to take as they pursue their future career goals. Winning second place in this competition has provided so many opportunities for these hardworking students.

North Montco Technical Career Center also thanks J.L. Freed Honda for their generosity in sponsoring the car for the competition!

See also:

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