Empire Auto Parts announced Jesse Kyles and Jamaal Medford as the inaugural recipients of $2,000 scholarships from its Empire Auto Parts Scholarship Fund, created earlier this year as part of Empire’s celebration of Black History Month and administered by the TechForce Foundation.
Medford is from New York and is currently enrolled in a one-year program at Universal Technical Institute in Long Beach, CA. Medford served in the U.S. Marine Corps for 15 years and is now transitioning toward a civilian career in a fast-paced, challenging industry. Collision repair fits the bill for Medford given the rapidly evolving nature of today’s vehicles.
“My dream career would be to be part of a team that grows together and can share industry knowledge to be successful,” said Medford.
Kyles is enrolled at the Tennessee College of Applied Technology in Memphis while also working at ATA Collisions. He has been fascinated by cars his whole life and has an ambition to run his own collision repair facility one day.
“In order to do that, though, I need to learn how to do everything,” Kyles said, and that means diving into his program at TCAT. “My end goal is to have a well-known shop and work on various Japanese-style cars, such as Mazdas, Honda, Mitsubishis and Nissans.”
“Empire Auto Parts is proud to support the ambitious dreams of individuals like Jamaal and Jesse, and we look forward to watching their careers blossom in the years ahead,” said Christopher Siebert, Empire’s CEO. “The industry is critically in need of capable talent that have the drive and skills to grow during dynamically changing times.”
The scholarships are part of a larger, multi-year financial commitment Empire has made in support of TechForce Foundation’s mission to champion students to and through their education into technical careers, including developing the next wave of collision industry professionals. In addition to these two scholarships, Empire will also donate parts to be used in schools that participate in TechForce’s skill development programs.
To learn more about TechForce Foundation and apply for scholarship opportunities, visit the website.
