Contact Tameka Kenan-Norman
Executive Director of Public Information and Institutional Advancement
Edgecombe Community College
2009 W. Wilson St.
Tarboro, NC 27886
(252) 618-6560
kenannormant@edgecombe.edu

ECC and Doug Henry Ford Tarboro partner to expand career opportunities

Richard Neumeyer, ECC graduate and parts salesman at Doug Henry Chevrolet Tarboro

Edgecombe Community College has adopted a virtual version of apprenticeship. Students enrolled in the college’s automotive systems technology program now have the opportunity to enhance their education and possibly start their career with Doug Henry Ford in Tarboro shortly after graduation.

According to the New Ford Tech website, “the Ford Automotive Career Exploration (ACE) program is a dealer-sponsored program intended to raise awareness and increase interest in career opportunities within the automotive industry, ultimately as a service technician at a Ford or Lincoln dealership.”

Stephen Dupree, an ECC automotive systems technology instructor, says students will be introduced to Ford’s online courses.

“Students are given an account that allows them to go onto the Ford training website and have access to the same materials technicians use to update their training,” says Dupree. “This online work will be a lot more representative of what they will see day-to-day in the workplace.”

With the introduction of the ACE program, Ford had the freedom to select their partner community college. According to Lee Grimsley, team leader at Doug Henry Ford Tarboro, strong community ties between ECC and the Ford dealership, as well as knowledgeable instructors, made that selection easy.

“We have benefitted by sharing information between the community college and us, and it also benefits us by hiring people who want to go in the automotive field and who are already on that career path,” says Grimsley.

ECC students who volunteer for and complete the ACE program may be offered immediate job opportunities upon graduation. They may also transfer their online curriculum progress to their new role once hired. Dupree says this is helpful considering that all technicians working at Ford dealerships are expected to maintain trainings and certifications through this same website model.

ECC graduate, Richard Neumeyer, learned about the ACE program during his last semester at ECC. He now works as a parts salesman at Doug Henry Chevrolet Tarboro, and shares information with students about the unique opportunity.

“I am working side by side with Doug Henry Chevrolet Tarboro and Ford to help promote the ACE program and inform current and future students of the benefits of the program,” states Neumeyer.” According to Neumeyer, the ACE program “will give students a leg up on the job force competition when trying to enter a Ford dealership as an automotive technician. The certifications they earn through the ACE program will get them closer to being a master technician when they get a job with Ford.”

For more information about the ACE program, contact Stephen Dupree at duprees@edgecombe.edu, or call 252-618-6581.