Developing A Curriculum For Electric Vehicle Technicians

Green River College’s Automotive Technology Center

As host of one of the state’s leading automotive technology programs, Green River College’s administrators and faculty recognized the need to incorporate electric vehicle repair technology into their curriculum. The industry is changing quickly, and with the continued advancement of electric and hybrid vehicles, Green River understood that curriculum to meet industry needs is essential now and into the future. 

As a certified DACUM (Developing A Curriculum) facilitator, Executive Director Jason Petrait was asked to lead a session of local electric automotive technicians to find out what they do each day, the duties and tasks that make up their work. Green River staff brought together an exceptional group of 10 technicians from across industry, hailing from Nissan, Toyota, Tesla, Buick-GMC, King County Metro and others, to gather their input.

Over the course of two days experts from the field, Jason, and Green River instructors and staff put together a DACUM Research Chart for Electric Vehicle Technicians. The chart will guide Green River’s future electric vehicle curriculum.

“This was a great group to lead,” said Jason. “Their excitement about the way their industry is changing along with their expertise comes through in the chart. The occupation itself has set steps, from when a vehicle comes in to when it is returned to the customer, which fit well into the DACUM process. And you can see from the chart how much they have to focus on safety. Those big batteries can be dangerous!”

DACUM first draft

The Electric Vehicle Technicians chart is the second recent DACUM led by the Center of Excellence. See the Avionics Technician DACUM chart here.