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TCAT — TCAT Elizabethton diesel students at Mountain City are pictured with toolboxes full of hand tools provided by a partnership with the American Job Center.  
 
Kathy Pierce, executive director of Alliance for Business and Training, said the local workforce development board and the Alliance for Business and Training provided the funds to purchase the hand tools through a partnership with TCAT Elizabethton. 

“The hand tools allow students to work on actual diesel vehicles, gaining the necessary experience for employment,” Pierce said. 
 
Funding for the partnership was established through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) and provided by the TN Department of Labor & Workforce Development. 
 
Patricia Henderson, student services coordinator at TCAT Elizabethton who made the arrangement, said the training provides students with practical experience in the repair and maintenance of diesel engines, fuel systems, electrical systems, clutch and transmissions, hydraulics, drive-lines, axles, frame suspension, and diesel truck and tractor steering.  
 
The program is taught by Freddy Anderson in the TCAT Addition to the Career and Technical Education Building at the Johnson County High School. Classes meet from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monday-Friday.  
 
Certificates will be awarded as Preventative Maintenance Service Technician, Diesel Engine Assembler, Diesel Technician Apprentice and Diesel Technician. Snap-On Certificates will be awarded in Safety, Torque, Multi-meter, Wheel Balance and Alignment, Scan Tool, PMI and Pro-Cut. The program also leads to a Diesel Technician Diploma Award.  
 
TCAT President Dean Blevins said the college appreciates the support of the workforce development board in the training of students for employment in the region.  
 
“The college offers training in a variety of programs that take anywhere from 8 weeks to 20 months leading to a certificate and/or a diploma,” he said. 
 
For additional information, contact Henderson at 423-543-0070, Ext. 1004.