For many in the transportation industry, Indianapolis is considered hallowed ground, due to its iconic raceways, museums, and overall history. A select group of UVU transportation technology students had a rare glimpse behind the curtain of that great city with some amazing events.

UVU professional-in-residence instructor Jeff Holm, professors Todd Low and Mike Elbert, and student media program director Grant Flygare guided eight students on a three-day whirlwind tour of the Performance Racing Tradeshow, the Indy 500 Speedway, Cummins headquarters museum, and had an exclusive tour of Speedway Engineering as some of the trip’s major highlights.

The 2021 trip to Indianapolis is the second time Holm and the UVU crew have taken students and introduced them to a wide variety of industry leaders. Students rubbed shoulders with lead engineers, marketing experts, and everyone in between, with some of the biggest names in automotive, including Doug Boles, two-time Indy Car champion owner and current president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Boles invited the UVU team to the Indy Speedway corporate conference room and spent over an hour with them answering questions about the industry. The students also enjoyed a special educational breakfast reserved exclusively for educators and students and listened to a keynote breakfast from Boles and racing icon Roger Penske.  

The events were made possible thanks to connections Holm has made over his years in the industry. “Not many have been blessed to do what I’ve done [in the automotive industry],” Holm said. “But I’ve always wanted to give back and this opportunity is one of those chances. I’m grateful to do it.”

The whirlwind trip also included a special, not-open-to-the-public, tour of the Cummins headquarters museum. The museum was open specifically for UVU students to tour. The Cummins Museum demonstrates their dedication to design by showcasing industrial equipment out of the shop and displaying it as product design.

This most recent event is just a sampling of the industry experts and leaders UVU has secured for students. In 2019, three-time Indy Car world champion and Indy 500 winner Sam Hornish Jr. met with students as well.

UVU’s transportation technology department features a wide array of programs for students to explore, including street rod, power sports, diesel mechanics, auto tech, and collision repair. For more information, visit https://www.uvu.edu/auto/.