But he had shown a heck of a lot of aptitude for doing a bunch of mods to my car back in 2003 when we first got it, and that got him to take some automotive tech courses, and suddenly he was getting A grades. Susan and I both grew up in academic backgrounds, but we did not hesitate to encourage him to follow his own path…the one he not only desired, but was good at. And when he said he wanted to follow his dream to Universal Technical Institute, arguably the best school for automotive mechanics in the country, we supported him there too.

The decision to attend UTI was not taken lightly. Not only was there a serious financial commitment (I believe the proper term here is "a shitload of money"), but Scott would have to leave every day at 5 AM for classes…and this is a kid who used to have trouble with attendance and lateness. And UTI is very serious about attendance, because their full program takes 22 months of straight instuction — no languid summers off here — to get you the equivalent of 3 years’ schooling in just under 2. Individual courses are 3 intense weeks long, and if you miss more than one day, you have to take the entire course over.

Scott put his head down and never looked back. And when he graduated today, he had taken just about every course you could: Automotive Technology. Diesel. Industrial. And an optional Ford course (he has an entire binder full of Ford certificates). And he got on the Director’s List (like the Dean’s List) almost 20 times.

But the thing he wanted most was to be accepted in one of the prestigious MSAT courses, which prepare you for a career working with a specific manufacturer’s vehicles. And he set his sights high: he wanted no less than the BMW program, which is called STEP (Service Technician Education Program). And you can’t just decide to take it…they must choose you. And if they choose you, you’re essentially getting a full scholarship, because BMW pays for the whole thing.

So I’m doubly proud to announce that he will be starting BMW STEP training in August…as the only one in his entire graduating class to be accepted.

Congratulations to Scott…a wonderful, mature, hard working, and very talented young man.

(See all the pictures here).