GASTONIA, North Carolina – During a surprise ceremony for students, faculty and staff and instructors, WIX Filters and Tomorrow’s Tech magazine named Hunter High School in West Valley City, Utah, as the 2017 School of the Year.
Hunter High School is the 10th recipient of the annual program, which recognizes the best technical training school in the country.
WIX and O’Reilly Auto Parts are title sponsors of the national award, in conjunction with Tomorrow’s Tech, a Babcox Media publication dedicated to automotive students.
“We felt Hunter High School did a great job on their entry video, showing us and telling us why they deserved the title this year,” said Jennifer Gibson, brand manager for WIX Filters. “The school runs a large and dynamic automotive program, all under just one instructor. Their passion is clear, and it’s obvious they love what they do. We’re proud to present the School of the Year award to these students; we know they will continue to accomplish great things.”
As the 2017 School of the Year, Hunter High School received:
- $2,500 donation for the school’s automotive technology program from WIX Filters
- Merchandise from O’Reilly and WIX Filters
- Travel for the school’s instructor and a guest to Las Vegas to attend Babcox Media’s recognition dinner at the Automotive Aftermarket Products Expo (AAPEX)
“We’re absolutely ecstatic to be named the 2017 School of the Year,” said Tyler Perkins, automotive technology instructor at Hunter High School. “At Hunter, our program is a team effort. We take pride in our hands-on approach and we’re so proud of our students.”
The School of the Year program is open to all high schools and post-secondary schools with a subscription to Tomorrow’s Tech magazine. Of the 370 entries for this year’s contest, 86 were from different high schools, technical schools and colleges in four regions of the United States. The top 20 schools were asked to submit a video highlighting their technical programs, and judges selected four finalists, or one from each region, from the video entries.
“This program is a great way to recognize the technical training talent across the nation,” said Dean Martin, publisher of Tomorrow’s Tech. “With each year, the competition continues to grow, and Hunter High is an outstanding example of the type of program we’re looking to highlight.”
This year’s three runners-up are: Suffolk County Community College, Selden, New York; Elizabethtown Community and Technical College, Elizabethtown, Kentucky; and Southeast Community College, Milford, Nebraska. Each runner-up will receive a professional automotive tool set and $250 gift card from O’Reilly Auto Parts.
