2010 SEMA Show Student Program a Striking Success

SEMA Member News—January/February 2011

	About 150 students and faculty attended a welcoming reception and pizza party at the Las Vegas Hilton on Monday evening at the 2010 SEMA Show. SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting was joined by Board of Directors Chair-Elect Paul “Scooter” Brothers in addressing the students and faculty at the reception.

The SEMA Show Student Program gives students access to the event’s Education Days sessions, key industry events and the opportunity to walk the Show floor and volunteer to work in exhibitors’ booths. Thirty national and international schools took part in the student program at the 2010 SEMA Show, with more than 620 students and faculty participating in a wide range of events. SEMA’s Vice President of Internal Systems and Project Teams Alise Miner and Trade Shows Director Gary Vigil kicked-off the program with a “behind-the-scene” tour of Central and North Halls’ Show floors to about 120 students and faculty on Monday, November 1, and about 150 students and faculty attended a welcoming reception and pizza party at the Las Vegas Hilton that evening. SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting was joined by Board of Directors Chair-Elect Paul “Scooter” Brothers in addressing the students and faculty at the reception.

Over the course of the next three days, more than 80 students spent some of their time with 20 SEMA Show exhibitors, industry journalists and SEMA staff at the association and media centers. During those visits, the students learned about a range of potential job opportunities within the specialty-equipment market.

On Wednesday, November 3, the students were treated to a special “Selecting a Mentor” coffee briefing that was sponsored by the SEMA Businesswomen’s Network (SBN). The SEMA Education Institute (SEI) hosted the coffee briefing, and the students learned firsthand about employment opportunities from leading industry experts, such as Tammy Holland of Comp Cams, S. Kellie Colf of AfterMarketer Club, JoAnn Bortles of Crazy Horse Custom Paint and Jason Bruce of aFe.

	On Wednesday, November 3, the students were treated to a special “Selecting a Mentor” coffee and learned firsthand about employment opportunities from leading industry experts, such as (from left) Tammy Holland of Comp Cams, JoAnnBortles of Crazy Horse Custom Paint, S. Kellie Colf of AfterMarketer Club and Jason Bruce of aFe.

A second coffee briefing, this time centered around the topic of “Effective Networking” and sponsored by the Young Executives Network (YEN), was held on Thursday, November 4, and was attended by more than four dozen students. Again hosted by the SEI, the students were welcomed by Gregory Parker and received networking strategies from YEN committee members that included Dan Kahn and Chris Crecelius.

Throughout the week, Miner hosted “Senior Walks” for about 30 graduating seniors. The walks encompassed visits with exhibitors that represent the fields and/or career interests of those who had graduated or were about to. Some of those students were even able to secure job interviews!

2011 SEMA Scholarship Program Launches

The SEMA Memorial Scholarship Fund is dedicated to fostering the next generation of industry leaders and innovators. The fund offers scholarships to today’s brightest students at universities, colleges and/or vocational schools in the United States. Awards range from $1,000 to $2,000, with $4,000 going to the top student.

The SEMA Loan Forgiveness Program is dedicated to aiding recent graduates in getting off to a successful start in their automotive specialty-equipment market careers. The program offers a minimum of $1,000 toward outstanding student loans for individuals who are employed by SEMA-member companies.

If you know someone who can benefit from these programs, simply have them visit www.SEMA.org/scholarships for details on how to apply for the SEMA Memorial Scholarship Fund or for the SEMA Loan Forgiveness program. The new applications went live on the SEMA website on December 1, 2010.