Last year, industry support enabled CREF to award $436,000 in Benchmark Grants to nearly 70 collision schools, impacting over 35,000 students.
The Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF) announced that applications are now open for its 2023 Collision School Career Readiness Benchmark Grants. The program seeks to alleviate some of the financial burdens faced by schools and instructors educating the industry’s future workforce by completing CREF’s online application that will qualify collision schools to receive up to $25,000 in funding.
“It’s often difficult for instructors – and the schools themselves – to maintain a program at its currently capability level, let alone advance the program, due to tremendous budgetary pressure. Yet constantly advancing technology necessitates that programs keep up with the ongoing changes in the industry to ensure the industry’s future workforce is prepared to enter shops with the skills necessary to make them a valuable part of the team,” stresses Melissa Marscin, director of operations/administration for the Foundation. “Thanks to the continued generosity of many in the collision repair community, CREF’s Benchmark Grant program offers vital funding for those schools to equip their programs with the materials and support necessary for elevating students’ educational experience in accordance with industry standards.”
In 2022, the industry’s generous support enabled CREF to award $436,000 in Benchmark Grants to nearly 70 collision schools, impacting over 35,000 students. Additionally, the Foundation distributed over $10 million worth of in-kind donations, including parts, products, quarter panels, subscriptions, safety equipment and more.
The deadline to apply for Benchmark grants is June 28, 2023.
The CREF student scholarship and tool grant application is also open online and closes March 9.