Today is known is known as GivingTuesday, an international movement to support nonprofit organizations following the consumer-heavy Black Friday and Cyber Monday. RV Industry Association Chairman Jeff Rutherford posted a letter to the organization’s website urging support for the RV Technical Institute’s Kevin Phillips Scholarship.
One of the biggest challenges our industry is facing is the lack of qualified techs to service our products. This has been identified through numerous customer surveys as well as discussions with RV Dealers, OEMs and suppliers. In 2018, the RV Technical Institute was established to recruit, train and place desperately needed skilled RV service technicians.
Kevin Phillips was one of the industry leaders and champions involved in establishing the RV Technical Institute. His passion for vocational training as an alternative to those pursuing college was instrumental in building consensus to create this program. So far this year, more than 5,000 technicians have been trained on the RV Technical Institute curriculum, significantly expanding the number of trained techs available to work on our products.
Tragically, Kevin passed away in April of 2021 due to complications from COVID. In October of 2021, the RV Technical Institute Board of Directors established a scholarship fund in Kevin’s name to help students looking to pursue a career as an RV Service Technician. In just a few short months, donations were received in excess of $60,000 to initially fund this scholarship. The RV Technical Institute Board selected a scholarship review committee and has begun awarding scholarships to new applicants.
The cost for an individual to obtain training and certification through the RV Technical Institute is $300 annually which provides access to the Institute’s entire menu of training options. For people just entering the work force or leaving the military, training costs are just another hurdle to overcome. Providing some assistance in the form of this scholarship not only helps the new technician, but will also recruit more RV technicians, a key resource that is severely lacking and threatens the ongoing success of our industry
To read the rest of Rutherford’s letter, click here.
