With mentorship from GTCC graduate, Logan on her way to career as auto body technician

Published on: August 1, 2024

When Chloe Logan began her apprenticeship in the body shop at Terry Labonte Chevrolet earlier this year, she was admittedly nervous, even apprehensive about her career path.

But little did she know that her future mentor had walked the exact same path.

Logan, an apprentice with Terry Labonte Chevrolet and a student at Guilford Technical Community College, is being mentored by Cristal Hernandez, who graduated from the same program in 2015 and has been working at Terry Labonte Chevrolet for the past seven years as a body shop repair technician.

“I try to give her the ins and outs and let her know it’s not that scary, that it is a lot of fun and there’s great money and benefits,” Hernandez said of the guidance she gives Logan. “She dives right into everything I show her, whether it’s welding or priming or taking bumpers off, she jumps right in. I see a younger version of myself.”

Logan initially enrolled in GTCC’s welding program and earned her welding certificate. But she wasn’t sure it was the correct career choice for her.

“I started in welding because it sounded interesting. When I finished that, I took a couple of classes to see what I wanted to do. Originally, I wanted to be a mechanic, but this seemed to be a better option,” said Logan, adding that her parents have fully supported her education and career choices.

“My parents were excited for me, excited to see me flourish in a position like this, excited to see what I could do and see what it took for me to get there.”

Logan’s decision to leave welding behind was a good decision. She recently won the SkillsUSA North Carolina state title for automotive refinishing technology and followed that up by finishing eighth out of 28 entrants in the SkillsUSA national competition in Atlanta.

It was a similar state-level SkillsUSA competition several years ago that landed Hernandez the job at Terry Labonte Chevrolet.

“They (the dealership) had a group there at the competition. They came by and talked with me and ended up offering me a job. I took it immediately,” said Hernandez, who spends time every year returning to GTCC to volunteer to help students in the automotive collision and repair program.

So far, Logan has spent most of her apprenticeship prepping and painting cars but that will change before long.

“At work, I will still be prepping cars a little longer, but then by August, I’m going over to apprentice in body tech,” said Logan

When she does return to school in August, Logan will spend all day at her apprenticeship position and take GTCC classes in the evenings. Before this summer, she had been splitting time between the classroom and the apprenticeship position.

“There is going to be a lot more for me to concentrate on,” Logan said of her upcoming class/work schedule. “I will be trying to concentrate on the collision side more.”

That career decision by Logan was a solid one said Hernandez

“Chloe said she had a big interest in body tech. Most people coming into this want to be painters … very few want to be involved in body tech,” said Hernandez.

“There is more of a need for body tech (workers) than painters,” Hernandez said. “Usually, every shop has one or two painters, and those people hold those positions for years and years. Body techs, though, come and go, and there is always a need.” Back to All Articles