On Thursday, February 15th, Minnesota Careers in Auto Repair & Service (MNCARS), organized a field trip for girls enrolled in auto classes at St. Paul Central High School. The group of 14 girls and their instructor visited 3 very different employers representing the auto service and collision repair industry to see women in action in the workplace and learn more about industry career paths.

At Merit Chevrolet in Maplewood, the girls met Jessica, a service advisor, Pat, assistant body shop manager and Jessica, a paint rep and trainer for local supplier, Blue Rock Refinishing Solutions. They toured around the dealership and learned about the women’s career paths and job responsibilities.

At 3M’s Automotive Aftermarket Division lab, the students met Elise, Caroline, Katie and Audrey , lab techs and engineers who demonstrated a variety of procedures and products used in the vehicle repair process. The girls had the opportunity to try panel bonding and spot welding themselves and see demonstrations on painting and removing defects from paint finishes.

The final stop was Medi-Car of Woodbury, where co-owners Susan Moynihan and Debi McConnell explained how they came to be owners of an independent auto repair shop. The girls learned about the shop’s apprentice training program and met technician, Tyler, who showed them how he uses a digital inspection program to identify recommended vehicle repairs and communicate them to the customer.

The goal of the field trip was to open the girls’ eyes about the many, varied and rewarding jobs and career paths that are available to them in the automotive service and collision repair industry. After visiting with the successful women at Merit Chevrolet, Blue Rock Refinishing Solutions, 3M Automotive Aftermarket Division and Medi-Car of Woodbury, there is no doubt that the girls from St. Paul Central High School now have a vision for the bright future that a career in the industry holds.