Photo credit: Village News
Dennis Johnson, automotive instructor at Fallbrook High School and advocate for ATL pathways, was recently recognized for his educational achievements by Harbor Freight Tools with the 2019 Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence.
Johnson worked in the automotive industry for 30 years before going back to school to become an automotive instructor. He received a bachelor’s degree in career and technical studies from Cal State San Bernardino in 2003 and has been at Fallbrook since 2017.
He runs his courses around a “Warriors Garage” curriculum that is aligned with both Automotive Service Excellence Foundation Standards and the University of California A-G requirements, which means his classes are considered college preparatory courses.
Fallbrook is one of the only high schools in the country to have a Mainline DynoLog chassis dynamometer, an innovative vehicle testing and evaluation tool that lets students simulate road conditions in their classroom.
Beyond the basics of automotive repair, Johnson teaches students applied science, mathematics, technology, and engineering. He leads students in peer learning as they teach each other about vehicle maintenance and repair.
“I want to equip each student with options and skills they can use regardless of the career path they choose to take,” Johnson said. Every student will own a vehicle. Learning basic maintenance and service procedures can help save them money and give them valuable skills.”
He also describes his students as his “VIP customers” and tries to do everything he can to make sure they are prepared to succeed.
Jonathan Kropp, ATL Regional Director for the San Diego region is newer to the Fallbrook High School advisory committee and said Johnson could not be more deserving of this award from what he learned through their meetings. “It’s very exciting to see local programs getting recognized for their hard work,” he said.
Johnson was one of 18 second-place finishers in the Prize for Teaching Excellence. He will receive $15,000, and Fallbrook will receive $35,000 from Harbor Freight Tools.
