Chris Morse
He'll straighten it out!
by Amber Olbrot
There's nothing like a shiny new car, is there? A car's life is a rough one. There's weather (even lots of sunshine is hard on a car's body), rocks, pot holes, other cars careening into one another.
Some folks find it a tragedy when their car, once shiny and new, has something hurt it's appearance and ability to run. Whether it be a dent, rust, or a broken windshield, it effects the whole look of the car.
Mr. Chris Morse, KACC's Collision Repair Instructor teaches his students the how's and why's this is really not the end of the world if that happens. A little fix here and a little fix there, and the car can look brand new. This is certainly evidenced by the many antique cars still on the road, albeit, during the summer months or in milder climates than the Chicago metro area.
Mr. Morse went to Momence High School. Like some of our other teachers here, Mr. Morse first came to KACC his junior and senior years. He knew back then he wanted to learn everything about automotive collision repair. Mr. Morse attended Wyoming Technical Institute following high school.
Once out of college, Mr. Morse went right into the workforce. Mr. Morse was well prepared following his years at KACC and Wyoming Tech so he had no problem getting a great job and being able to continue gaining more education through a variety of hands-on experiences in addition to what he was able to learn from his fellow co-workers.
Mr. Morse began his career working a few months at Baker's Body Repair. From there, he want on to Dicks Body shop for six years, and then worked work at Randazzo's Body Shop in Bradley for five years. Mr. Morse was able to gain additional knowledge and experience by accepting a job offer with Mac Tools. Although it was a good learning experience, Mr. Morse's love for his work and talents led him back to Dicks Body Shop for an additional four years.
Mr. Morse joined the KACC faculty in 2005. It is a great asset for KACC to have instructors with not only the education, but actual work experience to share with students. Mr. Morse brings his students 19 years of auto collision repair technology to his classroom each and every day.
Collision Repair is a very precise type of job. Mr. Morse teaches his students well on how to be both safe and careful as they work on actual automobiles. Mr. Morse shows his students how to remove and install body panels, use of special body repair tools, removal and repair of dents, among other repairs. KACC's Collision Repair shop and classroom area supplies the students with the same tools they would find in other body shops across the country. Mr. Morse makes sure he shares his knowledge with students throughout the entire process and works hand-in hand on every car. After auto body repairs are made, Mr. Morse shows how to conceal any hint of a previous accident. His classroom has a paint room where they can prime and paint the car part so it looks brand new.
Mr. Morse says "it is gratifying to see my students look at the end results after working on a car. They are typically very happy with their work while I am very happy, not only with their work, but with the fact they have learned something useful for their future careers."
Just seeing the car all shiny and dent-free, it is a good motivation for Mr. Morse. When a car looks like a "shiny diamond" Mr. Morse knows anybody can look at the car and other than the body style showing its age might think it was new.
