Icahn Automotive, an Icahn Enterprises L.P. company that owns and operates Pep Boys, AAMCO and Precision Tune Auto Care, was awarded the Chief Executive Officer and President’s Pride in Partnership Award by Lincoln Technical Institute (Lincoln Tech).
The presentation was made to Pep Boys representatives during a career fair and recognized the company’s recently established Race to 2026 program, which has invested in and supported promising future automotive technicians through scholarship, partnerships with schools, and continuing education opportunities, in an effort to fill the projected automotive technician gap.
The program – which distributed $50,000 in scholarships for automotive trade school students in 2019 – launched in February with branded classrooms and student events at Lincoln Tech campuses in Mahwah and Union, New Jersey, and Philadelphia, Penn., as well as other technical training schools nationally. Robert Paganini, Lincoln Tech’s Mahwah campus president, nominated Icahn Automotive for the award, which is given to one of the school’s top partners across the country each quarter.
“Icahn Automotive and the Pep Boys team are true partners and friends of Lincoln Tech, who have committed to hiring our automotive graduates and providing competitive wages to help ease the nation’s skills gap,” said Scott M. Shaw, Lincoln Tech president and CEO. “Lincoln Tech strives to develop and maintain quality community-based partnerships, and Icahn Automotive has taken its responsibility to the community and Lincoln Tech to the next level by demonstrating a commitment to and interest in the success of our students.”
“Our partnership with Lincoln Tech has enriched our talent pool of high-quality automotive service technicians and future managers, and we value our partnerships with the school’s faculty and staff that enable us to provide part-time jobs while the students are training and full-roles as soon as they finish the program,” said Charles Smith, regional vice president for Pep Boys. “While we certainly need technicians in every bay of our nearly 2,000 locations, we are also passionate about making an impact on the nation’s skills gap, and showing students that the trades, particularly automotive, are an excellent opportunity to build a long and lucrative career.”
