Senior Alex Wolfe placed fourth in the nation at the National Automotive Competition in New York on April 20 and was the first female to place that highly in the history of the event. Her auto body teacher, Scott Freeman, speaks highly of Wolfe and says that he is very proud.
“Alex always does well, even though she had some really tough competition this year,” Freeman said. “She had an uphill battle because he had to compete against last year’s first place winner, but she still found a way to win.”
Last year, Wolfe placed second in the state at the Ford AAA competition as a junior, and this year she qualifies for nationals in the Skills U.S.A. automotive service competition by placing first in the district and the state. She will be attending this event in Kansas City this June.
“Being a girl in a field with all guys is nothing special to me,” Wolfe said. “I shouldn’t get any special treatment because I’m a girl. I beat the other competitors fair and square.”
With her qualifications and accomplishments, Wolfe has received nearly $75,000 in scholarship money to attend the University of Northwestern Ohio.
“Because I’ve been doing so well, I can go to UNOH basically for free,” Wolfe said. “I plan on getting my associate’s in automotive maintenance and high performance.”
As for her career, Wolfe has goals of her own and doesn’t plan on letting anything hold her back.
“After college, I want to work at a dealership as a service technician and hopefully one day have my own shop,” Wolfe said. “But I know what I have to do to be taken seriously. I’ll have to work really hard, but everything I’ve done so far has prepared me.”