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TIMESLEDGER, MAY 5, 2019 TIMESLEDGER.COM
Thomas Edison HS students fi nish Top 10 at NYC auto show
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
Two seniors from
Thomas A. Edison Career
and Technical Education
High School in Jamaica
demonstrated their
superior auto technician
skills placing in the Top 10
nationwide in the National
Automotive Technology
Competition on April 24
during a final showdown
at the Jacob Javits
Convention Center.
Finalists Jordy Castro
and Lazaro Isidoro were
randomly assigned a 2019
Lexus and worked with
local dealership Rallye
Lexus in Glen Cove weeks
prior to the final round to
practice. Their instructor
Miguel Sierra, placed
first in the competitions
Instructor Challenge.
“Win or lose, it’s a
wonderful experience
for my students because
it shows them what is
expected in the industry
and trains them to meet
those standards,” said
Sierra. “I could not be more
impressed and inspired by
my students’ hard work,
problem solving abilities,
and highly technical
knowledge. I look forward
to following their long and
successful future careers
in the auto industry.”
For their strong
showing, the team, which
came in ninth place out of
29 teams was awarded:
• $10,000 Ohio Technical
College Scholarship
• $ 6 , 0 0 0 - $ 8 , 0 0 0
University of Northwestern
Ohio Scholarship
• $2,000 Universal
Technical Institute
Scholarship
• $3,000 Lincoln
Technical Institute
Scholarship
• Snap-on Tool Bag, 8
Piece Screwdriver Set, and
2 Piece Wide Radiator Hose
Pick Set
Organized by the
Greater New York
Automobile Dealers
Association since 1993,
the National Automotive
Technology Competition is
the auto industry’s largest
school-to-work initiative
and pits the nation’s best
auto tech students against
each other for the chance
to win $3 million in prizes
and scholarships.
The competition
culminates with a threehour,
under-the-hood
face-off, where students
diagnose and repair
automobiles that are
rigged with a variety of
malfunctions in front of a
live New York International
Auto Show audience.
According to Mark
Schienberg, president
of the Greater New York
Automobile Dealers
Association, the competition
is designed to encourage
more rigorous standards
for vocational education to
ensure students master the
skills they need to succeed
as lifelong learners, workers
and citizens.
“There is a huge shortage
of skilled technicians in
the industry and we need
these highly motivated
and talented young people
in dealerships across the
country to make sure
vehicle owners have access
to technicians with the best
computer and technical
skills,” said Schienberg.
Speaking at the
competition’s awards
banquet at the opening of
the Auto Show on April
20, Mark Schroeder,
Commissioner New York
State Department of
Motor Vehicles, applauded
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s
announcement of a new
statewide automotive
jobs and vocational
education program.
“We look forward
to working with all
stakeholders to create
a positive program that
will benefit students and
industry and ultimately the
people who buy and drive
cars,” said Schroeder.
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by email at
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.
com or by phone at (718)
260–4526.
Thomas Edison High School seniors Lazaro Isidoro (l.) and Jordy Castro (r.) finished in the Top
10 nationwide in the National Automotive Technology Competition on April 24 at Jacob Javits
Convention Center. Courtesy of Dominick Totino Photography
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