International Women’s Day – Shecanic

On March 8th, 2018, over 60 young women from Garden Spot High School and Middle School went to Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology to hear Patrice Banks speak. For those who are unfamiliar, Patrice Banks is a female mechanic who has opened her own auto shop on the outskirts of Philadelphia.  Patrice makes a point to hire women mechanics and to market her shop to women.  Her goal is to make women feel comfortable and confident taking their car to a mechanic.  Attached to her auto shop is a nail salon.  This is another way she tries to make her comfortable to women drivers.

Patrice’s ultimate goal is to empower women to be confident drivers and car owners.  To do this, she holds a car maintenance clinic at her shop once a month.  At the clinic, she teaches women how to change tires, check air pressure, check and change fluids, and other various essentials to know about a car. She has also written a book entitled, “The Girls Auto Clinic Glove Box Guide.”  This book is easy to understand and provides detailed steps of how to fix your car when there is a problem with it. At Thaddeus Stevens, Patrice spoke about her experiences growing up and when she finally realized that she wanted to be a mechanic and empower women everywhere. Her #sheCANic movement is inspiring women to get involved in STEM careers and is empowering women everywhere.

• Written by:  Ashley Antkowiak, Madelyn Oppenheim, and Courtney Zwally