By Cristian Gonzalez
SEMA Education continues to be one of the Show's most valuable features, giving attendees the chance to deepen their knowledge, gain practical insights and elevate their business practices through sessions led by top industry experts. With courses spanning eight core tracks, plus three partner tracks from the Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair (I-CAR), the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) and the Tire Industry Association (TIA), there truly was something for every professional looking to sharpen their edge.
SEMA Education relocated to the North Hall meeting rooms in 2025, making it easier to access from anywhere in the Las Vegas Convention Center. According to Gary Vigil, SEMA's senior manager of professional development, "The strong content coupled with the new centralized location resulted in large numbers of attendees taking advantage of this valuable Show feature."
But this recap isn't about highlighting SEMA Education's success. It's about highlighting the insights attendees gained from the many courses and panel discussions, expanding their knowledge and professional connections along the way.
A PLACE TO LEARN AND NETWORK
Among the attendees we spoke with was Liam Bennicoff from Factory 1 Auto Parts. He was coming out of his third session when we approached him, with three more marked on his Show itinerary.
SEMA Education speakers are experts in their presented topics. Bryan Robb, president of Digital Throttle, discusses tips and tricks for paid social-media advertising.
We noticed Bennicoff in several sessions throughout the week, and in each one, he engaged with speakers and stayed afterward to extract as much wisdom as possible. As he explained, "You go to as many different education sessions as you can to get the unique perspectives on each different industry."
Bennicoff continued, "I was talking to the head of marketing for Maserati, who was speaking here, and she really opened my mind to the fact that a lot of the time, you need to shoot for something more achievable to eventually obtain something higher. So by going to the tier-one suppliers--just getting your foot in the door and not necessarily trying to push your way through to something you don't necessarily have enough experience for--those are the kind of inputs I'm getting from people in these leadership roles at these education sessions that I normally wouldn't get just talking with people around the Show."
The "AI Robots Are Coming" session hosted by SCRS had everything you could want in a classroom setting--flames, robots and intriguing, informational lectures.
People like Bennicoff primarily attend education sessions to learn about cutting-edge trends, business strategies and emerging technologies that can affect their industry sector. But the sessions are also spaces to network. Attendees often find themselves in a room filled with people who share similar interests and face the same challenges.
Rafael De Marco was an international attendee who traveled from Uruguay to evaluate opportunities at the Show. De Marco works in software development specializing in AI, making him a perfect fit for the workshop he attended, "Business Transformation Leveraging on AI and Cloud Computing." After the session, he connected with CJ Pelletier of DIFFRNT Media, another attendee who raised interesting what-if scenarios during the session's Q&A period that De Marco related to.
As they exchanged insights, we asked what they thought about the SEMA Education program, the networking opportunity they had just experienced and the class itself.
"I love to connect both work and my passion," said De Marco. "That way, work doesn't feel like work. And I think this is the right place to make connections for it. All around, AI touched on my business, and the expertise of the speaker was really good."
Pelletier added, "One hundred percent. I think it was cool how you could connect AI to our industry, the automotive industry, as well as how you could get insight into the future. Right now, where it's at, AI is already doing crazy things, and what it's going to be doing soon--we can only prepare for it."
SPEAKING OUT
Who are the people speaking on stage, answering any and all questions, and staying on after the sessions to engage further with attendees? Most of the time, they're like you--members of the industry, experts in their craft with significant knowledge to share.
We caught up with Ernie Vole, owner of Ernie's Custom Shop and a contributing panelist on the Truck and Off-Road Builders' Panel, to learn what he enjoyed about speaking to peers in a seminar setting.
An especially popular session continues to be the Hot-Rod Builders' Panel moderated by Rick Love of Vintage Air. The 2025 panel featured legendary names in the business, including two Battle of the Builders winners--Bobby Alloway and Troy Trepanier.
"The questions that were asked to us were definitely challenging," said Vole. "But I feel, being shop owners, we can relate to everybody that's sitting there. So there's a lot of cross-referencing between everything, and it gives everyone good insight. I feel really good about it."
Vole believes SEMA Education has advanced over the years and is more vital now than ever, given the transformations taking place in the industry.
"Times are different, and we're all in a little bit of a challenge as the world is changing. Before, you would sit in, just have a good time and hang out with some people. Now, you're a little more focused on listening. Being a shop owner, we've got to figure out what's the next step, what's the next best thing and how do we approach it, because it's a lot different now."
I-CAR AND SCRS
Collision-repair organizations like I-CAR and SCRS also delivered education tracks in partnership with SEMA Education. While these were fee-based sessions, attendees recognized the value these partners brought through their curricula. In fact, many attendees who are not collision-repair specialists also found the seminars useful for expanding their business understanding.
Many sessions are quite intimate and hands on, giving attendees a unique learning experience.
Take Stephen Holloway of the Rusnak Auto Group, a luxury car dealer in Pasadena, California. Holloway attended an I-CAR MIG welding session even though he is not a technician working in a shop.
"I work in the corporate office, but from time to time we have equipment needs and things like that, and it's important for me to understand it all," Holloway explained. "I insert myself into that process because it interests me. In most dealership groups, people from the office wouldn't be doing this. But I think it's great. I love coming every year. I love going to these seminars. I always leave learning something."
Like the I-CAR program, the SCRS curriculum covered a range of collision-repair topics, from advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) repair and recalibration to employee-retention strategies. Aaron Schulenburg, SCRS executive director, agreed that the 2025 SEMA Education program, like the Show itself, reflects the industry's drive for excellence and innovation.
"The energy, the education, the engagement--it was everything that makes this industry special," said Schulenburg. "I was thrilled by the quality of content our presenters brought to the stages and classrooms, and even more so by how many attendees prioritized education this year. Seeing an increase in education registrations over last year felt like a real success. I can't wait to see how we build on this next year."
