To show its ongoing support for the students who will one day shape the automotive industry, provincial dealer associations from coast to coast in concert with the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association, announced a major investment in the Automotive Business School of Canada (ABSC) at Georgian College in Barrie, Ont.
In front of a sizeable crowd at the school’s campus, the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association, along with representatives from provincial dealer associations, presented a $250,000 cheque to the Georgian College auto school to transform its current lobby into a space that mirrors a modern show room.
“The first thing that parents and young men and women see when they walk in to the school is the lobby,” said Richard Gauthier, President and CEO of CADA, who has been involved with the automotive school for 15 years.
“At the end of the day, the future of our industry rests on the shoulders of the men and women who graduate here. We wanted to make a good first impression,” said Gauthier.
Marie-Noelle Bonicazi, Dean, School of Business, Automotive and Hospitality, says the renovated lobby, which is expected to be completed by October, 2015, will act like a “living classroom” where students can learn how to do walkarounds with vehicles and use the latest technology.
“It’s a testimony of how strong the relationship is between CADA, and the provincial associations and the Automotive Business School of Canada at Georgian College. So this is awesome news for us and it just solidifies this whole partnership,” said Bonicazi.
For Gauthier, the vision for the school goes beyond renovating the lobby.
“The reason I wake up in the morning is to promote the car dealers of Canada and do whatever I can to make them more successful, and to ensure that success in the years to come is through educated and passionate young men and women in that sector of our business.”
