What's Happening at Ranken Technical College

Spark Plug Challenge

Enter the Spark Plug Challenge with a friend at the upcoming Ranken Car Show on April 15th. 

Sponsored by the Alumni Council this challenge will test your skills at spark plug changing— 4 out and 4 in—the fastest time wins a prize! At the end of the day are you the fastest? Champion trophy will be given during the awards ceremony for the fastest time recorded. Singles, duos and teams are welcome. The cost per timed contest is $1 and all proceeds go toward the Alumni Association Scholarship Fund.

See you there!

 

"Rebuilding Day" Annual Community Service Event

Alumni and students are invited to participate in the national Rebuilding Day sponsored by St. Louis' Rebuilding Together organization. This day of giving back to the community by repairing, rebuilding and upgrading homes of the elderly, handicapped and low income in the St. Louis area will be held on Saturday, May 5 from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. 

Groups all over the country will be joining together to help others on this national day of service. This is the 3rd year for Ranken's involvement in this event and is a fun day supporting a good cause. Only a helping attitude, 25 workers and a house captain are required. Personal tools are a plus! Join us as we assist a homeowner near the Ranken campus and continue support of our neighbors.

Pictures of previous Rebuilding Days can be found at our Flickr Page.

Contact Kathy Fern, (314) 286-4895 or email ktfern@ranken.edu with your interest or questions.

Time To Nominate Distinguished Alumni!

It is time again for annual nominations for the Distinguished Alumni and Distinguished Young Alumni Award to be presented at Ranken's May 12 graduation celebration at the Chaifetz Arena. These awards honor Ranken graduates who have excelled in their career and given back to their community. The deadline for nominations is January 31, 2012. 

The criteria, nomination form and additional information can be found at  http://www.ranken.edu/alumni/honoring-our-alumni under Awards. Any questions can be answered by contacting Kathy Fern, (314) 286-4895 in the alumni office.

Recipients will receive a commemorative plaque and name inscribed on a perpetual plaque. 

Past recipients are Distinguished Alumni Earl Walker (2010) and Tom Wood (2011) and Distinguished Young Alumni are Andy Raines (2010) and Jeff Scott (2011).

Automotive Hosts Conference for Local Teachers

 
On October 6-7, Ranken hosted the 72^th semi-annual Illinois College Automotive Instructors Association Conference (ICAIA). The first day of the conference began with a trade show where more than 30 vendors from industry set up and displayed their products. By 8:30 a.m. more than 120 automotive instructors had made their way through the trade show.

Conference attendees included 143 automotive instructors from Missouri and Illinois, many were from the Chicago region. Technical presentations took place throughout the day and presenters included representatives from GM, Ford, Hunter Engineering, Snap On , and 3M. Lunch was served to 220 people in the atrium of the Mary Ann Lee Technology Center.

On Thursday evening, a banquet was held at the Pear Tree Inn and 135 people were in attendance. Jim Halderman was the guest speaker and gave an excellent presentation on the emerging technologies in the automotive industry. Two $950 scholarships were awarded to Ranken students. Lucas Klinkhardt from AMT and Steven Hayn from ACR received the scholarships. The scholarship money was donated from ICAIA, Mac Tools, Keystone and ATI.

The second day of the conference continued with technical presentations from Ranken instructors, Omar Trinidad from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale , Tom Freels from Sinclair Community College, a representative from Snap On and a representative from 3M, just to name a few. Many positive comments were made by attendees on Ranken’s facilities and overall everyone seemed very impressed on what the College has to offer.

 

Ranken Programs Offering Summer Courses!

The following programs are offering day school summer courses for ambitious students who would like to get a jump-start on their career! Classes begin June 6, 2011.

    -Automotive Maintenance Technology

    - Information Technology

    - High Performance Racing Technology

    - Industrial Technology

 

The following programs are offering evening school summer courses for working adults who want to complete their education even faster! Classes begin the week of May 16, 2011.

    - Automotive Maintenance Technology

    - Electrical Maintenance Technology

    - Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Technology

    -Pipefitting Technology

    - Welding and Fabrication Technology

If you would like more information or would like to register for classes for one of these programs, contact our Admissions office at (314) 286-4809.

Arnie Knepper Scholarship

 

The first Arnie Knepper Memorial Scholarship was presented to John Hunn, High Performance Racing Technology student at Ranken Technical College. Pictured with John are race car driver, Kenny Schrader and St. Louis Racing Fan Club Board Member, Wanda Knepper.

April 2010 Ranken Technical College "Show & Shine"

 Spring has sprung, and along with the emergence of beautiful flowers and suddenly green grass and trees comes the fabulous automobiles of the St. Louis area.

The Easter Car Show in Forest Park may come first, but it is only a preview of the predictably successful Ranken Technical College Annual Car Show for the last 7 shows.

This year we had 325 fabulous entries; Cobras to VWs, Camaros to Packards, and a motorcycle or truck to please every taste.

A big thank you to the staff and students of Ranken for a flawlessly executed event.  Also our great appreciation for the excellent security provided, an important factor for the show's success.

It was my pleasure to visit with St. Louis Post Dispatch columnist, Bruce Kunz, his grandson, Pablo, and all the car owners and visitors who paused briefly at my cars to chat.

A personal thank you to my fellow 50 year alums, Pat Marlow (Class of 1956) and Dave Meier (Class of 1960) for helping me get my '71 Impala and '81 El Camino to the show while I was driving my '73 Camaro.

 

A special thanks also goes to Skip Weise (Class of 1973) for bringing his fabulous Cobra.  Very impressive Skip!

Thank you Ranken Technical College for a job well done and we look forward to a repeat of the event in 2011!

submitted by:  Bill Rueckert (Automotive Class of 1956)

Cars needed for next Campus Calendar

If you are a Ranken graduate and interested in submitting a picture of your classic, custom or modified car for the 2010-2011 Car and Campus Calendar, now is the time. Information and entry forms are due by July 15, 2010.  A selection committee of the Alumni Leadership Council will select the featured vehicles.  This 15-month calendar will become available in October 2010 and makes a great Christmas gift.  Calendars will be sold for $10 to cover the print costs.  Submit the entry form below with a story about the restoration of your vehicle, the best .jpg picture you have of your toy, and hope for the best.  At least 15 cars will be chosen.  Sorry, only Ranken alumni can submit vehicles and cars only please!  Please send all information to Kathy Fern in the Alumni Relations Office on the Ranken Campus.  The entry form is available here (Download Car entry form _2_) in downloadable format.

If you own a business and would be interested in advertising in the 2010-2011 Car and Campus Calendar, business card size ads are available for $100.  Please contact Kathy Fern at ktfern@ranken.edu for more information. 

Car Show's 7th Year is Big Success

On Sunday, April 18 Ranken hosted its seventh annual car show and alumni reunion with much success. It was a very busy day with 325 vehicles on display and many spectators visiting campus just to enjoy the weather and check out all the trendy cars. Along with the car show entrants, CARSTAR, Don Brown Chevrolet, Big Foot and the Burgundy Baron were a few of the well known participants.

Kids had the opportunity to have their faces painted by Moolah Shrine Clowns, the River City Rascal mascot entertained while KLOU 103.3 provided music. Many attendees walked away with raffle prizes, including the popular mailboxes that are provided by MVTAP and made and donated by students from South Tech, North Tech and Lewis and Clark. Each year the car show is an outlet for students to come together and enjoy their passion for cars, as well as a way to invite the community onto campus for a day of fun activities. Since the weather was so nice and Ranken had a wonderful group of volunteers, the event turned out to be a show to remember.

Congratulations to all of the car class winners! For more photos, visit Ranken’s Facebook page.

7th Annual Ranken Car Show and Alumni Reunion this Sunday!

Don't forget to join us this Sunday, April 18 for Ranken's 7th Annual Car Show and Alumni Reunion. The show will run from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The event is free for spectators and car entries are only $10.00. Prizes will be awarded for 1st, 2nd and 3rd in each class.

The CARSTAR group will be back for the event this year hosting a new game called the "Guess the Estimate" game. They will have a wrecked car at their booth and participants can take the opportunity to guess what the repair estimate would be. The participant whose guess is closest to the actual estimate will win a $50 Visa gift card!

For more information about this event, contact Dan Kania at 314-286-4834.