From STAFF REPORTS

AMERICUS — John Deere dealers from Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and Alabama hosted the “South Georgia Classic” golf tournament recently to raise scholarship funds for the John Deere Tech Agricultural Technology students at South Georgia Technical College (SGTC).
The dealers raised nearly $3,000 at the golf tournament for the SGTC Foundation that are designated for John Deere Tech scholarships. The tournament was held in conjunction with the John Deere 2017 Division P Optimization Training event which was hosted at SGTC prior to the tournament. The two-day optimization event was a free training session for the parts, sales, and service professionals from five John Deere dealers in the four-state area.
Nine different teams participated in the 18-hole tournament which featured a shotgun start at the Griffin Bell Golf Course in Americus. The Flint Ag and Turf team of Lonnie Ray, Blake Lodge, Jackson Pennington and Jackie Fleetwood took first place in the event with a score of 56. Raffles for a Yeti cooler and mulligans also were held to help raise funds for the John Deere Tech program.
Students enrolled in the John Deere TECH agricultural technology program can earn a two-year associate of applied science degree in agricultural technology while partnering with John Deere agriculture and turf equipment dealers from across the southeastern portion of the United States for a career as a John Deere technician.
To enroll in this program, students must be sponsored by a John Deere Dealer. The students spend eight weeks on campus in classrooms and labs learning specific objectives, then work with a dealer for eight weeks to put their knowledge to work in a dealer setting. The students return to the college for another eight weeks of classroom and lab training and repeat the pattern during the four-semester program.
Studies indicate that there is a critical shortage of technicians in this field and the John Deere TECH partnership helps satisfy this need. Students will graduate out of the John Deere TECH program having a detailed understanding of John Deere equipment and bring John Deere certifications in electrical, hydraulic and Service ADVISOR™ with them to the dealership.
Students in the SGTC agricultural technology program are enrolled in general education courses, but students also train and become John Deere certified in electrical and hydraulic systems as well as John Deere’s computer based diagnostic tool, Service ADVISOR™. Students utilize John Deere equipment, training components, and computer diagnostic tools to understand what makes equipment run. Students will also spend time understanding engines, drive trains, and product applications for a variety of agriculture and turf machinery.