INDIANAPOLIS — Racing fans from around the country are turning their eyes toward Indy this weekend for the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
But some Indianapolis Public Schools students watching the race will do so with hopes of working with cars themselves after graduation.
Their school is giving them the training to go right from school to a full-time job.
At Arsenal Technical High School, the classes inside the automotive program are hands-on as students are put to work.
"Day one, they're able to take the skills we teach them here and apply it at home," said Nate Mitchell, automotive instructor at Tech.
"Like just recently, I changed the starter on my mom's car because it stopped working and she was happy about that," said David Arellano, a sophomore in the school's automotive program.
The program is drawing in students like Arellano and Shanelin Molina.
"Ever since I was little, I liked cars a lot and I always thought about working on cars. And now, finally that I have the chance to, I'm going to take advantage of that," Arellano said.
"My dad and my uncle work on cars and they know how to fix cars and everything and I was always interested," said Molina, a Tech junior.
Mitchell puts his students in the driver's seat, teaching them everything from oil changes to tire rotations and engine work.
"Even though it's been pretty hard, it's really fun. It's really, really fun," Molina said.
"Yeah, it's cool with all the tools and everything," Arellano said. "Good tools, too, not the cheap stuff."
Graduation from the program comes with a near-guarantee of work in a garage.
"Every dealership in the state of Indiana has been in our office to ask for our students," Mitchell said.
And with Mitchell's former students now working in dealerships and independent shops around Indiana, the program is now looking to widen the road of possibilities to potentially include the field of racing.
"They're very intuitive. They want to learn, they want to learn about it and I get on them about, here we are in the state of Indiana, in the capital world of racing, and you need to get involved," Mitchell said.
Along with giving kids a peek at an Indy 500 pace car, driven by to Tech by Superintendent Dr. Aleesia Johnson, Mitchell said they've even gotten kids tickets to races and practices through month of May, hoping to find a way to one day match his students to the teams on the track.
"Trying to find out the pathway," Mitchell said. "I think after this year, we'll be able to open up to the that realm of opportunity."
But even now, Mitchell's work is already helping students like Molina get behind the wheel of their future careers.
"I really want to pass this class and graduate so I can start my own dealership and everything," Molina said.
They are dreams Mitchell said he's proud to see come true for his students, both in the classroom and out on the road.
"It's more rewarding than you can imagine," said Mitchell.