Collision Engineering Career Alliance names president

The Collision Engineering Career Alliance (Collision Engineering) has appointed Mary Mahoney president of the nonprofit organization.

Mahoney will take the helm full-time following her retirement from Enterprise Mobility, effective Feb. 1.

The nonprofit was created last year as a collaborative effort to address the collision repair technician shortage and as the next step in growing the Collision Engineering Program (CEP). CEP is a two-year, hybrid/work-based learning associate degree program. Students rotate every eight weeks between classroom instruction and paid apprenticeships at trusted collision repair facilities. The model provides students with the opportunity to earn an income while completing their training.

Mahoney brings a wealth of experience to the role, having dedicated 40 years to Enterprise Mobility, most recently as vice president of the Replacement and Leisure division, according to a Collision Engineering press release. In that role, she was responsible for managing industry relationships with global insurance, collision, dealer, and OEM customers.

“The collision repair sector is evolving rapidly — vehicles are more advanced, technicians need broader and deeper skills, and traditional pathways into the field are not keeping pace,” Mahoney said in the release. “As I devote more of my time to Collision Engineering, my priority is clear: to help develop the skilled talent our industry needs and nurture the partnerships that strengthen it. To me, this next chapter is not a conclusion, but an exciting continuation of the work we have started together. I’m grateful to Enterprise Mobility and to everyone who shares this vision, and I encourage others to join us in supporting this critical need. It will take all of us to safeguard the future of collision repair.”

The Collision Engineering Career Alliance is active at partner schools across the country including College of Lake County in Grayslake, Illinois;  Contra Costa College in San Pablo, California;  Parkland College in Champaign, Illinois;  Metropolitan Community College in Omaha, Nebraska;  Sandhills Community College in Pinehurst, North Carolina;  North Dakota State College of Science in Wahpeton, North Dakota; and most recently at El Camino College in Torrance, California. Enrollment in the program at El Camino begins in May.

Those interested in supporting the program can learn more at beacollisionengineer.com.

In December, a new vehicle donation program was launched, which aims to provide collision repair programs with newer model vehicles for students to work on, as schools and instructors often face budgetary limitations.

It was created in partnership between the Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF), Ford Motor Co., Collision Engineering, and I-CAR to facilitate vehicle donations nationwide, providing students with a clearer understanding of the complexity of modern vehicle technology.

The vehicles will serve as valuable training tools by allowing students to gain hands-on experience with modern automotive systems and prepare for real-world repair scenarios, according to a press release.

Images

Featured image: Mary Mahoney (Provided by Collision Engineering)