From left: Mark Hotaling, Kirsten Pepper-Cole, and Jim Button.
Sidney CSD continued its commitment to the trades and work-based learning with a recent two-week partnership with the DCMO BOCES auto mechanics program that gave a Sidney student the chance for hands-on learning with diesel mechanics.
Sidney senior Kirsten Pepper-Cole, who is part of the auto tech program at BOCES, spent a portion of each day over the past two weeks working with Jim Button and Mark Hotaling in the district’s bus garage. Button and Hotaling are the district’s mechanics and Pepper-Cole received hands-on experiences in diesel mechanics.
“It was a big deal to me,” Pepper-Cole said. “I wanted to do something different.”
Her last day for this experience was Thursday, March 30. Button had approached the district about honoring her for the work she did. She was presented with a Sidney CSD mechanics shirt and a certificate.
Button said maybe that shirt will come in handy in the future.
“I would welcome her back to work with us,” he said.
Pepper-Cole will attend SUNY Cobleskill in the fall.
Button and Hotaling said Pepper-Cole didn’t waste any time getting her hands dirty. She had a chance to learn about DOT regulations, helped work on the buses, and got a front-row seat into different aspects of the job.
“It’s good to have kids (interested in mechanics) come in and see this and different regulations,” Button said. “It’s important for them to see this side of it. Maybe they will take the extra step.
“Kirsten did whatever we asked of her and she’s done very well,” he continued. “Opportunities like this open a kid’s eyes and they can learn different things. It might inspire them.”
Hotaling said it is a profession that allows anybody to shine if they put in the time.
"She jumped right in and did great," Hotaling said. "There's a lot to learn and she has a great head on her shoulders. She will go far. She impressed us from day one."
Pepper-Cole said her interest in mechanics started at a young age when she learned different aspects of it on the family farm. This experience, she said, is the type of thing that more students should try to have. Whether it’s mechanics or some other field, Pepper-Cole said more students should try different things.
“This will help kids,” she said. “I didn’t want to just be on a computer. I wanted to be hands-on. We should try new experiences. Try any new experience and see if you like it.”
Sidney CSD has worked to give students who are interested in the trades and work-based learning the opportunities they seek.
“Students want to be challenged and have opportunities to explore their interests,” Sidney CSD Superintendent Eben Bullock said. “We want to make sure we give each student the chance to try and experience different fields so they can better prepare themselves for the future and to help them decide a career path they will want to follow.”
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