Skyline College student mechanics take apart stereotype

Link: https://www.mercurynews.com/2011/02/11/skyline-college-student-mechanics-take-apart-gender-stereotype/

Wearing dark gray coveralls and with her hair in a ponytail, Dana Kaplan grabbed the grease gun. She had already taken the front left tire off the PT Cruiser, and now pointed the gun into the lube fittings.

"That's a little overkill," she said, realizing she might have applied too much grease.

Kaplan, 31, and some of her classmates had been working for half an hour one day recently to determine the cause of a clunking noise under the vehicle belonging to their automotive instructor, Julia Johnson.

A few cars over, Alexandra Liu, Brandyn Tomkovic and Maureen Moscoso inspected the brakes on a white Chrysler LeBaron.

"We're popping the brake pads, checking the rotors for warping," said Tomkovic, 23, adding casually, "You know, very basic stuff."

Tomkovic, Kaplan and Liu are members of the Heart Wrenchers, a club they helped form at Skyline College in San Bruno to recruit and support women who want to improve their automotive skills.

Eleven women are among the approximately 150 students enrolled in Skyline's Automotive Technology Program, the only one of its kind in San Mateo County. Officials at nearby Chabot College in Hayward estimate they have between six and 10 female automotive students.

These students are part of a distinct minority in a profession that historically has been dominated by men. According to a 2009 occupational report by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, women make up only 1.8 percent of automotive-service technicians and mechanics.

But the number of women learning automotive technology at Skyline is increasing quickly, much to the delight of Julia Johnson, who has been working tirelessly to boost female participation.

"Skyline has graduated only one woman (in the auto-tech program) in the past decade, and that woman was me," said Johnson, 42. "That is going to change dramatically."

After graduating in 2007 and becoming an instructor shortly thereafter, Johnson won a grant from the college's President's Innovation Fund that she used to visit high schools, career centers, CalWORKs meetings and other community colleges to recruit female students into the field.

Although women may sometimes consider pursuing automotive jobs, they need more support to follow through with the program, she said.

"The whole time I was in school, there were other girls," Johnson recalled. "But they'd take a class, and I'd never see them again. And I know why. It's because they need their group -- we need to support each other."

The Heart Wrenchers aim to fix that.

"We have a general automotive club, but we wanted something specifically to empower women in the program, since we're such a minority here and in the industry," said member Audrey Ingalls, 26.

Formed last semester, the club is now planning activities such as helping Girl Scouts earn automotive badges and setting up scholarships to help female students pay for the profession's pricey tools, which can run more than $1,000. The club will hold a fundraiser Saturday in San Francisco to support its activities.

One of its broader goals, however, is to help low-income women and families fix up their vehicles. "To lift themselves out of poverty, they're going to need a car," Johnson said.

The women also aim to dispel the notion that overt gender discrimination is prevalent in the industry. Sarah Vanoorschot, 31, who worked previously at Jiffy Lube, said she rarely experienced stereotyping.

"Sure, you have those guys in class who think they know everything," Vanoorschot said. "But then when you prove them wrong, they get quiet pretty quickly."

Liu, who works at City Toyota, admitted she was initially intimidated by the dearth of female students in her classes.

"I was like, wow, there's a bunch of guys," said Liu, 31. "But then I met a couple of girls in class, and after that I got more confident."

Johnson said it may actually be easier for women to get automotive jobs these days because a lot of female customers feel more comfortable with them, and many auto-shop owners aim to improve their workplace diversity.

As for whether the difference in the physical strength of men and women matters in automotive work, members of the Heart Wrenchers said it depends on the job. For most tasks, though, there are tools that compensate for any lack of brawn.

Club members stressed that women shouldn't be intimidated by lack of experience. Some, like Johnson and Kaplan, started the program with practically no knowledge of cars.

The skills they learn in class can lead to other paths as well. Tomkovic is looking into becoming an auto insurance adjuster, and Ingalls wants to combine her automotive know-how and artistic talent by someday working in a custom shop.

Vanoorschot, who has fond memories of rebuilding the engine in her first car, a '79 Ford Mustang, said the skills are incredibly rewarding.

"When you tear an engine apart and have to rebuild it," she said, "it makes you appreciate a car a lot more."