A year and half later, Shaw granted Hebert $17,000 to purchase the inventory to get his independent CARQUEST jobber store up and running, Hebert said.  The 40-square-foot parts store, called Warren Tech Auto Parts, nestled in the school's Automotive Technology department, gives second-year students (seniors) the opportunity to learn how to learn the basics of running a parts store, he said.

Hebert, a former employee of General Parts Inc. (GPI), enlisted the assistance from Chris Torres, regional director of store sales for Denver and Albuquerque, who got the approval from GPI officials in Raleigh, N.C., to proceed with the project.

"Once students go through Warren Tech's curriculum, they're ready to go in any store," Torres said, who donated the computer hardware and Exploris management system that is used in every CARQUEST store.  "Hopefully, when they graduate, they'll be able to transition right into the industry."

In the past, students participating in the Parts Specialist curriculum, part of WT's Automotive Technology program, in place for more than 10 years, had a difficult time finding dealership parts departments and parts stores willing to hire student interns, Hebert said.  "Managers didn't have a lot of extra money to pay for an intern," he said.

The in-school store ensures that students learn the basics of running a parts store before they're hired into dealership's parts department or jobber store.  Before enrolling in the parts curriculum, students must complete their first-year service and repair courses in Automotive Technology, Hebert said.

The parts store, coupled with the service bays, is set up similar to a large independent repair shop or franchise dealership, Hebert said.  Pricing is automatically updated nightly via CARQUEST's Exploris system, he said, adding that inventory is ordered twice monthly and delivered from CARQUEST's West Alameda Avenue jobber store in Lakewood.  For the most part, the inventory includes the 10 fastest-moving parts in each product segment, he said.

"Parts are sold the school's shop at a profit," Hebert said.  "The profit that we make in the store goes to the SkillsUSA fund."  So far, the store is averaging $2,500 a month in gross sales, he said, adding that the emphasis is on training, not solely on profitability.

Each time a part is sold, the student working the counter generates an invoice and a purchase order number, Hebert said.  "Students don't get parts unless they have a repair order number."  The parts are then charged to one of three accounts, he said, depending on the type of job, which could be for a customer pay vehicle, a SkillsUSA vehicle, or for internal use for educational purposes.

"It's another part of the learning process," Hebert said, referring to parts billing.  "The counterman must know whether the vehicle he's selling parts for is a customer pay, SkillsUSA, or a mockup."

Since there's math involved in the Automotive Technology classes, which range from engine diagnostics to parts, Hebert said students can now earn a half math credit towards algebra.  This helps students fulfill the new three-credit math requirement, he said, adding that that had been an obstacle to getting new students into WT's programs.

So far, WT parts curriculum students have been placed at CARQUEST stores with mentor managers at the West Alameda outlet in Lakewood and at one in Arvada, Torres said.  "It's worked out well; they're great kids."