Public Information Office

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DATE: February 14, 2005
CONTACT:  Mark Hankins, SCC, (206) 546.4758, mhankins@shoreline.edu

Shoreline Community College launches
alternative fuel vehicle training center
Senator Maria Cantwell Supports Advanced, Clean Energy Program

Shoreline, WA — Shoreline Community College (SCC) has been selected by the National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium (NAFTC) as the site of Washington State’s new National Training Center. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) congratulated SCC representatives in Washington, D.C. last week, saying that “People love their cars. The solution to our country’s energy independence may lie in using cleaner energy sources to power our cars and building public awareness of the benefits. Shoreline Community College’s Automotive Program is well-positioned for this important initiative.”  

The NAFTC is the United States’ only national, nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering clean air and energy independence by providing automotive workforce education and consumer outreach in the field of alternative fuel vehicles. The new National Training Center based at Shoreline will offer standard

training and education on advanced technology, clean energy vehicles. Courses will be offered to the public and may also be tailored and offered onsite to meet a particular client’s needs. 

Lee Lambert, Interim President of Shoreline Community College, Mark Hankins, Interim Director of Automotive and Manufacturing Programs, Gary Main, Automotive Project Curricula Development Manager, and Madhuri Hosford, Automotive Project Consultant, were in Washington, D.C. last week to accept a commemorative plaque from NAFTC Executive Director AL Ebron, who noted, “Shoreline is one of only 27 colleges nationwide that offers NAFTC’s standardized alternative fuel vehicle (AFV) training and outreach services, and Washington State’s only National Training Center.” Lambert delivered the keynote address at NAFTC’s Congressional Informational Conference on Capitol Hill, where congressional aides and Consortium members learned how the nationwide program helps meet crucial energy independence and environmental goals. 

Lambert stated, “The Pacific Northwest is leading the way in adopting cleaner technology vehicles, and that means the number of certified technicians qualified to repair and maintain these new vehicles must grow, too. For example, last year Washington State was third in the nation for the most new hybrids, while Seattle ranked fifth in U.S. cities with the highest number of new hybrids (according to R.L. Polk & Company), yet currently no other Northwest institution offers to the general public alternative fuel vehicle technician training and certification. Shoreline is very pleased to begin offering this NAFTC service.” 

Powered by biodiesel, natural gas, ethanol, hydrogen, and hybrid gasoline-electric systems, alternative fuel vehicles are one means of improving air quality and weaning the nation from foreign oil. NAFTC National Training Centers help promote the adoption of AFVs through a variety of standardized automotive training programs for technicians, fleet managers, public safety and first responder organizations, and the lay public.   

SCC's selection as a National Training Center is an outgrowth of the college's earlier $1.5 million national demonstration model grant from the U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration to develop new training programs for the automotive sales and service industry and to recruit and equip non-traditional populations for careers in the industry. 

To learn more about SCC’s alternative fuel vehicle training programs, contact Mark Hankins at (206) 546-4758 or mhankins@shoreline.edu. For more information about the NAFTC, contact Judy Moore at (304) 293-7882 or judy.moore@mail.wvu.edu.

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) congratulates the Shoreline Community College NAFTC National Training Center delegation in Washington, D.C. recently.  (Left to right) Gary Main, Shoreline Community College Automotive Project Curricula Development Manager; Lee Lambert, Shoreline Community College Interim President; Senator Cantwell; Madhuri Hosford, Automotive Project Consultant; Mark Hankins, Shoreline Community College Interim Director of Automotive/Manufacturing Programs.

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