The national accreditation of Bartlett and South Elgin High School’s automotive courses this fall is just the beginning, School District U46 officials said.
The two programs are the fifth career and technical education (CTE) courses accredited by a national organization in the last two years. But district officials are not satisfied with five — they want all career and technical education courses nationally certified as proof students are ready for employment.
“Accreditation is the gold seal for a program,” said Kinasha Brown, the U46 CTE coordinator. “When talking about aligning curriculum, what does that mean? Do we teach them about autos or prepare them for a career in automotive?”
Two weeks ago, the district announced Bartlett and South Elgin’s automotive programs had earned national certification from the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation. The accreditation means the courses provided at the school will offer current, up-to-date instruction on the current state of the automotive industry.
Brown said the entire process took nine months to a year to complete, which included an application, a self-evaluation, and a National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation evaluation.
Bartlett automotives teacher Daniel Mejdrich said the accreditation allows his senior students to take a student certification test from the Automotive Service Excellence, which is usually given at a later age. Passing it give students a “soft certification” that potential employers should value greatly, as well as save the students some money in future classes.
“It will give them a stronger resume with the test on it,” he said. Among all his auto classes, Mejdrich has about 150 students.
Bartlett and South Elgin join Elgin High School, which earned National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation accreditation last year, as recent honorees. According to the foundation’s website, 27 secondary schools in the state have some form of National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation accreditation.
Last year, Streamwood and South Elgin High’s precision metal-working programs earned national accreditation from the National Institute for Metalworking Skills. The reasoning was the same: the schools wanted programs that gave a better chance for students to succeed once out in the workforce.
Brown said the goal is to get national accreditation for all possible CTE courses in the high schools. Next in line is the district’s welding programs, given the growth of the trade in the U46 area. The district also wants to be a testing facility for prospective welders.
It won’t be easy, though, Brown said. “It does take time. We’re looking at it taking another 9 months to a year (for a program).”
