HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) - Students in Kansas can take free classes on how to fix tractors at two community colleges through a technology program partnership with John Deere.
Students can enroll in the free agricultural tech program at Garden City and Fort Scott community colleges as long as they find a John Deere dealership to sponsor them.
The programs usually run at capacity, which means it is important for students to find a sponsor as early as possible and to inform the college. Although official registration for the associate degree program begins in the spring, notifying the colleges about a sponsorship reserves a slot in the program, The Hutchinson News reported.
Students from Greensburg who are accepted into the program typically attend Garden City Community College, while Hutchinson students go to Fort Scott Community College. Meanwhile, students in northern Kansas usually travel to Nebraska. Students in the program are free to attend any participating college they wish, including schools in Arkansas, Illinois, New York, Oregon or Georgia.
“It is really a great program,” said Ryan Unruh, corporate service manager at BTI. “Our success rate is pretty high.”
The starting salary for a technician job is $50,000 to $60,000 annually, with higher rates based on experience, Unruh said.
Attending a college close to where students plan to work helps them receive training on specific crop-related equipment. Both FSCC and GCCC focus on corn equipment training, but FSCC also trains students on bean equipment and GCCC offers training on wheat machinery. Overall, all students learn the basics of fixing any John Deere machine, from electronics to transmissions and engines.
Kent Aikin, a John Deere instructor at FSCC, said Kansas is in high demand for the field.
“If a person enjoys working on things and diagnosing problems, this is the right program for them,” he said.
PrairieLand Partners in Hutchinson is currently sponsoring two Fort Scott students, and it has had graduates from GCCC.
“They’ve been a real asset,” said Merlin Weber, service manager for PrarieLand Partners in Hutchinson. “They basically can hit the road running a lot easier than the other techs who haven’t had (this program). They reach higher levels sooner. It’s a benefit for them, a benefit for us, and a benefit for the customer.”
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