Automotive Collision & Diesel
2021-2022 Program Review

Although listed together Automotive Collision, Diesel and Technology is actually three separate programs each with their own topic code, instructional staff, department chair, and budgets. Automotive Collision and Diesel Technology are located off campus at the Mather facility. The Automotive Technology Program, automotive department, is located on the ARC main campus.

The automotive department is fortunate to have a program-level planning unit that consists of automotive industry members students, and both adjunct and full time faculty members. This planning unit team works in conjunction with the automotive department advisory committee that meets once each semester. The purpose of the program level planning-unit is to keep the automotive department relevant to the automotive industry, to support our students and support the greater Sacramento community.

The automotive program-level planning unit team has a good cross section of students, faculty and industry members which provides an equitable and inclusive platform to the planning process. The action plan is continually reviewed against the mission of American River College to ensure a academically rich and respectful learning environment. This plan then receives input from the automotive advisory committee to ensure good community engagement.

Over the past six years there have been new challenges that were unforeseen when the last action plan was created. These challenges range from unexpected instructor vacancies, to facility issues and the COVID 19 pandemic which has made achieving many of the previous program goals unattainable.

For example a previous objective was to continue to improve existing facilities equipment and hardware to maintain a state of the art program. We wanted to add facilities to allow more laboratory and lecture classrooms as at the time the program was at Max capacity especially for evening courses. With strong workforce and Perkins funding we were able to continually improve program equipment and hardware we were not able to improve the existing facilities and today face many issues related to facility maintenance.

In 2024 the department is slated to get new facilities however we will be losing square footage which again will limit the number of classes that can be offered in the program. Until that time we need to continue to make the best of our existing facility and require maintenance on several items ranging from sinks to HVAC systems to be able to educate the number of students we served before the pandemic.

Another previous objective was to continue to add to our adjunct pool of qualified faculty. We were seeking ASE master certified technicians as well as high school automotive faculty to teach our curriculum. We have made some progress in this objective with the start of our dual enrollment classes however through the pandemic we had lost some valuable faculty both adjunct and full time and require more support in this area.

Working through that pandemic brought new challenges however it also provided provided many lessons that have been incorporated into the new program objectives.

The automotive program-level planning unit team did identify some consistent strengths of the program with a strong connection to local area high schools and a great staff that is flexible adapting to continually changing teaching environment. For example the automotive dual enrollment courses continued throughout the pandemic and are planned to double in size by adding two additional schools in the next two years. Additionally before the pandemic the department had very little experience with online education and was able to transition a number of courses two online instruction some of which will stay in online format or have transitioned to a hybrid instructional format moving forward. The department has found this hybrid teaching format has helped keep the program flexible and has in some instances made better connections to some students groups while lessening the burden on existing facilities.

The team however has identified many program challenges that present areas that are in need of improvement and provide some additional opportunities. Many of those challenges revolve around facility maintenance issues and security issues where there is funding to purchase equipment but not adequate support to keep equipment running or facilities secure to prevent theft. The facility issues range from broken sinks and poorly working ventilation systems two new equipment that has been installed however cannot be used as we are waiting for facility electrical connections. The team believes that if the college wants to truly have equitable program that supports students needs and develops critical thinking then the college must first meet students basic needs with providing a facility that has working heating cooling electrical and pluming that allows students to wash their hands in hot water and keep them comfortable in both the classroom and lab areas. Furthermore money spent on equipment upgrades is not effective if the new equipment cannot be connected to the proper electrical facilities in a timely manner. These maintenance issues will need to be addressed the before the program can support the number of students that were served before the pandemic.

Throughout this period of analysis there are huge data limitations as in general enrollment dropped dramatically with the start of the pandemic and the limitations of online only instruction in a hands on educational field. In addition data between automotive, diesel, and auto collision programs appeared intermixed making it hard to to draw significant conclusions in the data.

The analysis period did provide some areas of great interest as coming back from the pandemic and transitioning back to in-person instruction, the program was able to run classes at low enrollment levels not previously seen since the early 2000s. Back in that period of time the maximum class size in automotive hands-on courses was 18 students. Starting up in the summer of 2021 the department was able to run courses at similar sizes ranging from 12 to18 students. However the department was also required to run all courses in a hybrid format which limited the teacher student contact time considerably. Even with reduced student contact hours class objectives were met and students excelled. This experience has shown both the faculty and students that a lower student to teacher ratio not only allowed for better SLO achievement but used class time much more effectively.

The automotive program-level planning unit team believes these findings and objectives will increase the effectiveness of the program, give the students a better experience and will allow for growth.

The ideal future for the automotive program would start with class sizes that are back in line with what was the standard in the early 2000s. Having a maximum of 18 students allows each student to make a personal connection with the instructor and provides that student with the support they need to meet their goals.

The future would also include adequate staffing both full-time and adjunct automotive faculty to meet student needs and provide adequate program outreach.

Lastly the ideal future of the department would have adequate support with security to protect valuable tools, equipment and vehicles. Facilities that feature operational equipment, working sinks, air conditioning and heating systems. This is desirable to the college because if we truly desire to improve our institutional effectiveness and increase our academic quality we must first meet basic student needs.

One program-level objective that would have a huge impact on student success is lowering the student to teacher ratio. Achieving a maximum class size of 18 students would not only provide the students with a better learning experience it would help alleviate the pain that is inflicted when classes are cancelled due to low enrollment numbers. This is critical as automotive technology is a hands-on field preparing the students for real world jobs. As such the bulk of the instruction actually happens during the lab period where students work directly with the instructor. Our unit intends to work with the academic senate and administration to achieve the 18 student maximum size that we previously had in this department. Success will obviously be measured if we are able to lower the maximum class size at all and then once that class size is lowered by looking at student grades achievements and completion towards their SLO's.

A second program-level objective that positively impact students would be to improve the facility maintenance and support. By meeting basic student needs we can then improve institutional effectiveness and increase our academic quality. Our team will work with the administration and facilities management and encourage action at every opportunity to get items repaired, increase the security of the facility and follow up with issues. This can be measured easily with a tour of the facilities and a look at what items are working or broken.

Our last program-level objective would be to obtain a full-time faculty member to get us back at pre pandemic staffing levels. The automotive department lost a critical faculty member right before the pandemic started. This loss was masked as during pandemic online instruction the department ran a reduced number of classes. Now that we have transitioned back to in-person instruction the program is extremely shorthanded which has effected class offerings and program partnerships. This full time faculty hiring would allow us to create more comprehensive class schedules that better meet student needs. This can be measured directly by looking at our full-time faculty staffing levels.

The automotive unit's intended enhancements support a commitment to social justice and equity by first meeting basic student needs in the automotive program. This begins with having any good student to teacher ratio that allows instructors to make personal connections and positive impacts on their students. The second objective of improving the facilities with proper security, electrical, plumbing and ventilation is again focused on meeting student basic needs for a quality education. Finally having the proper amount of full time faculty that have been trained inclusion and transformative education will help ensure each student receives the support they require for success.