As Washtenaw Community College prepares to celebrate its 60th anniversary, we recognize the thousands of alumni who turned opportunity into achievement. For six decades, WCC has opened doors to education, careers, and brighter futures — and these 60 Stories that will be compiled over the year reflect that enduring mission.
Through programs driven by industry input, Washtenaw Community College has equipped Andrew Wilczynski for two careers.
After earning a Transportation Technologies associate degree at WCC in 2016, Wilczynski worked in the parts department at an Ann Arbor Mercedes dealership for six years.
He’d been thinking about pivoting his experiences and education for some time and transitioned into a career in 2021. He re-enrolled at WCC to pursue a Cybersecurity associate degree.
Wilczynski almost immediately found a job in his new career field with SBD Automotive — a research and consulting firm whose primary audience is the automotive industry — and is wrapping up his first year in the company’s graduate program, which is sponsored by Ann Arbor SPARK.
“The biggest thing I tell people about Washtenaw is the flexibility — a lot of different programs, a lot of different options," Wilcynski said. "Online classes are nice for working people, or if you have kids, and night classes are helpful if you work during the day. Just the flexibility and range is what I definitely recommend.”
Separately, SBD Automotive, whose North American headquarters is based in Ann Arbor, has reached out to the college to build a relationship and potentially hire WCC students for its growing business.
“I love my new job and working for a company that doesn’t just see you ‘on paper’ and actually wants to see what you’re capable of when it comes to doing the job, and at WCC the instructors give you such real world examples and a lot of simulation," Wilczynski said. "They’ve really prepared me well.”
Marrying his automotive and cybersecurity education backgrounds brought Wilczynski to this year’s North American International Auto Show in Detroit with SBD. Washtenaw’s participation as the only community college at the Auto Show exemplifies its strong partnership with industry.
Eight years ago WCC launched its Advanced Transportation Center to integrate advanced manufacturing, transportation technologies and information technologies to educate and train students for the talent pipeline. Always looking ahead, the college is now integrating automotive cybersecurity and electric vehicle design into its curriculum.
“We work closely with our mobility partners and train students to be job-ready when employers need them,” WCC President Dr. Rose B. Bellanca says. "We focus on the future as well as the present, which is important because you want to be prepared when they call. We have that approach to all of our programs.”
This story first appeared in the Winter 2023 edition of Launch magazine. See complete issue.
Tags: 60 Stories, 60th Anniversary, Advanced Transportation Center, Automotive Cybersecurity, Transportation Technologies