Colleges in the heart of NASCAR
country are offering new courses to meet a growing demand in the racing
industry.
For the first time, next semester Central
Piedmont Community College
will offer machining and welding courses teaching students to build the
frames and engines of high-tech race cars.
It joins Catawba Valley
Community College, Rowan-Cabarrus
Community College and UNC
Charlotte, all of which have started various types of motorsports programs
in recent years.
The programs are attracting out-of-state students and building Charlotte's
reputation as a hub of NASCAR training, said Tim Frost, an independent motorsports
consultant.
The popularity of motorsports has exploded in the last decade.
Attendance doubled at NASCAR's Winston Cup events, and 11 major racetracks
have been built or planned.
That growth, coupled with the increasing complexity of racecars, has
created a shortage of skilled workers who can build and repair high-tech
cars.
"The days of hiring shade-tree mechanics are over," said Jerry
Gappens, a spokesman for Lowes Motor Speedway. "These days, there's so
much more technology. You need more than mechanics. You need engineers and
technicians and people who specialize."
The need is so great that the NASCAR circuit is building its own $12
million technical institute in Mooresville, scheduled to open in summer
2002. It's a joint effort with Universal Technical Institute Inc., a chain
of for-profit vocational schools.
Gappens said he does not think the institute will compete with the
college programs because the industry is so broad and the programs are so
different. Consider:
The NASCAR Technical Institute will offer a 57-week program in
automotive technology.
UNCC offers a four-year program to train engineers to design racecars.
Graduates receive a mechanical engineering degree with a concentration in
motorsports.
Catawba Valley
Community College in Hickory
offers a package of short-term technical courses that introduce students to
all aspects of racing. Its 20 best students each year build three cars and
race them in the USAR ProCup series. It's the only college hands-on program
in the United States
in which students build, field and serve as a pit crew for a car in a
professional racing division.
Rowan-Cabarrus Community
College teaches courses about management and
racing basics to students who want to be managers in the industry.
Graduates get a two-year associate's degree in Motorsports Management
Technology.
CPCC initially will offer 16-week courses in motorsports machining and
welding, though it hopes eventually to expand the program. Students will
receive certificates in those fields.
To prevent any overlap, local community colleges are discussing forming
a joint regional Motorsports College of Excellence.
"We don't want to be competing against one another," said
Laurie Walker, head of the CPCC program. "We would rather work
together and become partners."
To capitalize on their locations, most local programs require students
to get hands-on experience with local teams.
Eddie Dickerson, who runs the car-building shop at Hendrick Motorsports,
said finding skilled workers has gotten easier in the last few years as the
local programs have started producing graduates.
"If you walk in the door and you already know how to do this stuff,
it's so much easier," he said. "I may have to pay a little more
for that experience, but I get something back instantly."
College administrators say the programs get more popular each year. Many
of the new students are from out of state, such as Natasha Robbins, who
moved from Wisconsin to North Carolina as soon as she turned 18.
The first woman to enroll in the CVCC program, Robbins graduated last
year and now works for the Pro Cup series, registering drivers and
crewmembers at races.
"My dad races, and it was always my dream to get involved,"
she said. "I knew if I ever wanted to be really involved in racing, I'd
have to come here."
