Master Automotive has recently pledged $500,000 to support the Automotive Institute at Augusta Technical College (Augusta Tech).
“Together with partners like Will Schafer at Master Automotive, we are building a national model for automotive training,” said Dr. Jermaine Whirl, president of Augusta Tech. “The state of Georgia recognizes that automotive tech is a critical industry with far too few qualified individuals to fill the many available jobs. With this new facility, Augusta Tech will train more than 1,000 students per year to fill these lucrative jobs.”
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The Automotive Institute will be 65,000 square feet, which is increasingly bigger than the current 10,000 square foot building that occupies the program.
“There is a major need for a facility such as this in our community, and we are excited to be a part of it,” said Will Schafer, Master Automotive CEO. “Having somewhere for local students to learn and train directly out of high school is so important. This facility teaches complex, technical skills that help make for excellent careers. For more than 85 years, Master Automotive has been focused on service and giving back, and we continue to accomplish this by investing in the community with programs such as this one.”
The Automotive Institute is being built on the site of the former Johnson Cadillac, and it will open and hold its first classes in Fall 2025.
Currently, Augusta Tech is offering a diploma and several different technical certificates of credit programs in automotive technology. However, with the edition of the new building, more programs will be offered, like auto body and collision and light, medium, and heavy diesel. Augusta Tech plans to add automotive-industry specific classes to its Associated of Applied Sciences degrees in the School of Business.
The new building will be called the Jim Hudson Automotive Institute in recognition of the $1 million gift from Jim Hudson Automotive Group. A $1 million gift was also received from the Augusta National Golf Club and the Knox Foundation to acquire the facility.
