ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -

A dealership group headquartered in Florida is taking an active role in helping to prepare the next generation of automotive service experts.

Crown Automotive Group has announced its partnership with Northeast High School’s Automotive Academy to offer students a real-world look at dealership service departments in action.

All this week, students are getting the opportunity to observe and learn from automotive professionals onsite, as Crown Collision Center service director Mike Elliot was set to host students Monday and today at the collision center in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Then, on Thursday and Friday, service director John Schnepp of Crown’s Pinellas County operations will host students at the Crown Honda service department in Pinellas Park, Fla.

“We are excited that Crown Automotive Group is helping us offer our students this hands-on experience at working service centers,” said Kevin Hendrick, principal of Northeast High School.

“In addition to classroom learning, real-world professional experiences make students better prepared for the job market and success; it's an incredibly valuable learning opportunity,” Hendrick said.

Service director Schnepp said, “This is an excellent opportunity to highlight some of the available career paths for graduating high school students looking to enter the automotive service industry. We look forward to offering these students the chance to experience an up-close and personal interaction with fully operational dealership service and collision centers.

“The industry can offer young people a bright future, with numerous opportunities for career development,” Schnepp added. “Crown Automotive Group is honored to be hosting these sessions and we look forward to an ongoing partnership with Northeast High School as students continue to join the Automotive Academy.”

The Northeast High School automotive technical and auto collision programs are renowned in the Pinellas County school system, serving as a Center of Excellence for these programs for its stringent standards. The Automotive Academy has also received certification by The National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation and The National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence.

“Our automotive students are interested in pursuing a career in the automotive industry, and there is no better way to get their feet wet than to spend time with professionals onsite, and learn firsthand the industry expectations of prospective employees,” said assistant Northeast principal Greg Zornes. “We are very grateful to Crown for this opportunity.”

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