Automotive Trades Department of ASC, in Conjunction with Tenneco, Sponsored a "Drive and Ride" Event

The Automotive
Trades Department of Alfred State College, in conjunction with Tenneco,
sponsored a "Drive and Ride" event in September at the Wellsville Campus. 
Following a successful day of interactive automotive technology demonstrations
and drive experiences, a banquet was held to honor the folks in the after-market
automotive industry who have been supporters of the college.  Plaques were
given to Tenneco, Standard Motor Products, Inc., and UniSelect USA in
recognition of the dedication to Progress through Partnership shown by each of
these companies in developing and supporting the unique partnership for
automotive education.

Standard Motor Products, Inc., a leading independent manufacturer and distributor of
replacement parts for motor vehicles, was honored by the College
in gratitude for its donation of a comprehensive collection of technical
training manuals, engineering specs, and wiring diagrams from 1960 through
2008, reportedly worth $1 million. The company conducted a national search for
the right educational institution to receive this treasure trove, and decided
on Alfred State College, because of its impact on the future of the industry
and because of its partnership with UniSelect.

Also honored by
Alfred State College was Tenneco, one of the world's leading
suppliers of automotive emission control and ride control products, for its
continued sponsorship of Drive and Ride events.  These events, scheduled
to take place every other year, allow each class in the automotive trades
programs and their instructors to experience a session of interactive
automotive technology demonstrations and drive experiences, including a fleet
of identical vehicles running on a custom-designed temporary road course. 
The Drive and Ride activity offers participants the chance to drive two cars,
comparable in every way but one:  one car has its original shocks and one
car is equipped with Monroe premium shocks.  Drivers evaluate their
performance on a road course constructed on campus to test driving skills.

Finally, UniSelect
was honored by the college for its stalwart support of the campus, including
its many generous donations to the automotive parts technology program, both in
scholarships for students and for
start-up funding for the program.  UniSelect also spotlights the
college and its automotive trades
programs during its national conferences and links to ASC on its Web site.

Craig R. Clark,
executive director of the Wellsville Campus, and dean, School of Applied
Technology at Alfred State College, said, "UniSelect has truly become a
national partner with the Automotive Trades Department under the leadership of
two Uniselect employees who are both ASC alumni.  Al Mosher, ASC class of 1973,
Alfred State partnership manager, division stores manager, UniSelect; and
Carmen Capriotto, ASC class of 1972, executive vice president, Corporate
Stores, UniSelect, have worked diligently with the many leaders of UniSelect
including Jim Buzzard, executive vice president, UniSelect Automotive Group
USA, and his leadership team, to develop this partnership. Many of the national
and area managers of UniSelect have visited the Wellsville campus which
resulted in a $150,000 donation to the college to start the automotive parts
technology program both in traditional and online formats. UniSelect invited
ASC to participate in its national conference in Las Vegas in 2007 to announce
the new automotive parts technology program, and to participate in all of
UniSelect's northeast training conferences. This exposure has resulted in
additional donations of training, software, equipment, and manuals to the
college. The best example is the recent Standard Motor Products Inc. donation
of manuals that many major universities in the United States wanted to obtain.
UniSelect has encouraged its vendors to donate equipment, software, and manuals
to the college.

The long-term vision of UniSelect
is to gain additional industry support for all of the automotive trades
programs and to build a new state-of-the-art 5,400 sq. ft. training facility
and parts store on the Wellsville campus in the near future. This ‘Progress
through Partnership,' announced in fall 2006, is beginning to make a real
difference to the college."   

Pictured here,
Alfred State College President Dr. John M. Anderson presented the award. 
Accepting on behalf of UniSelect was Mosher who has been on the Automotive
Trades advisory board for nearly three decades and has always had a vision of
generating national support for the automotive programs on the Wellsville
campus.  That vision started to take shape when he was area manager for
Fred Roberts Auto Parts and he started the Wellsville campus Fred Roberts Auto
Parts store which has had great impact on the 250 students on campus repairing
live
vehicles as part of their course
work. This on-campus store was the start of a relationship with MAWDI which is now part of
UniSelect. Mosher has been a driving force behind the current partnership
between UniSelect and Alfred State College.

The automotive
parts technology program is a two-year AAS (associate in applied science)
program complementing the existing automotive trades curriculums which include
degree programs in automotive service technician, autobody repair, heavy
equipment: truck and diesel technician, and motorsports technology.  Its
objective is to supply automotive parts stores with entry-level employees.
There is currently no college-level automotive parts technology curriculum in
the state that fills that need, according to college officials. The new online
offerings will provide the ability for Alfred State College to offer the
program nationwide.

Fred Roberts Auto
Plus, a division of UniSelect, currently runs an active auto parts store on the
Applied Technology Campus in Wellsville, where students are regularly exposed
to its operation.