Students visit Santa Clara Valley Transit.
Hartnell College is partnering with Santa Clara Valley Transit to train students to work on two new electric buses that are now part of its fleet.
CEC funding is being used to help establish Hartnell as a training and repair facility for the transit system.
Automotive Instructor Pete Escoto said he is excited about what this partnership will bring to the college and its students.
“We are in the process of building a partnership for a facility where we can train local students who want to get into their repair program,” Escoto said. “They can use part of the facility, and we can use the training portion of it.”
Students visit Santa Clara Valley Transit.
Escoto said demand for enrollment in hybrid vehicle courses far surpassed expectations. What started as one class of 25 students grew to two full sections and a third that’s nearly full.
The college recently organized a field trip to Santa Clara Valley Transit to give students an idea of what they will hopefully be working on soon. Escoto said the hybrid vehicle course has been an eye-opening experience for students.
“When they start the course, most students don’t realize the importance of alternative fuels, but by the end, 100 percent of them are interested in looking toward careers in that area,” Escoto said.
