Brookdale Begins Training Students In Electric Vehicle Technology

LINCROFT, NJ — Brookdale College, Monmouth County's community college, will infuse electric vehicle topics into their courses this fall to begin training students in the maintenance and repair of electric cars.

This will be training offered by the Automotive Technology Department (AUTO) at Brookdale, which is where Brookdale students train to become car mechanics.

It is also launched by the STEM Institute at Brookdale.

The community college says it is responding to state and industry demand.

Students enrolled in Brookdale's mechanic/auto program will soon graduate with a credential showing they have been trained in electronic vehicle technology.

Brookdale purchased a Chevy Spark, an electric minicar, for students to study. According to CARHP, issues have been reported over the years with Chevy Spark's engine, engine shut down after hitting speed breaker and the engine refusing to accelerate. There have also been safety issues reported with the Chevy Spark.

"With the help of federal Perkins funding, AUTO recently purchased a Chevy Spark that will be used in AUTO laboratories to demonstrate and teach electric vehicle fundamentals and practices," said Brookdale STEM Dean James Crowder.

Crowder and AUTO Department Chair Ivan Anderson are also seeking a $600,000 National Science Foundation - Advanced Technological Education grant, which include outreach to populations historically underrepresented in the automotive field.

In addition, Anderson and Crowder have recently been invited by the National Engineering and Vehicle Technology Exchange (NEVTEX) to apply for a role in Northwest Engineering and Vehicle Technology Exchange (NEVTEX’s NSF-ATE) Track 3 Consortia for Innovations in Technician Education.

"This opportunity could provide the Brookdale AUTO Department with as much as an additional $125,000 for electric vehicle training and technology," said Crowder.

NEVTEX is working with 30 industry and community college partners to create a standardized approach for training and certifying electric-drive vehicle technicians. Project leaders hope the standards will eventually lead to a licensing process for these highly skilled automotive technicians.