BEDFORD, TEXAS, Sept. 19, 2006 - The Automotive Management Institute (AMI), in conjunction with Babcox Publications, recently announced Steve Sallinger, owner and president, Ole Metairie Car Care, Inc., Metairie, La., as the recipient of the "Tom B. Babcox Memorial Scholarship." The scholarship recognizes a management-oriented member of the Automotive Service Association (ASA) Mechanical Division. The recipient receives $1,000 to be applied toward expenses to attend AMI seminars offered during the Congress of Automotive Repair and Service (CARS) in Las Vegas, Nov. 2-4.

Sallinger has worked in the automotive service industry for 30 years and has been a shop owner for the last 20. He is an ASE Certified Master Technician and recently completed the necessary requirements to earn the Institute's Accredited Automotive Manager (AAM) designation.

When not working in the shop, he contributes his time to various community and industry organizations, including serving as the vice president of the ASA-New Orleans affiliate and participating on the Advisory Board for Delgado Community College Automotive Department.

"We consider AMI education to be another diagnostic tool that is necessary to run our automotive repair shop. Like the electronic tools, our management tools must be updated regularly to support the changes in our industry and in our business. I appreciate the opportunity to get those updates at CARS and learn with and from other ASA members."

AMI was established to answer the demand for continuing education tailored specifically for the business needs of the automotive service industry. The Institute offers the Accredited Automotive Manager (AAM) designation, the first business management accreditation exclusively for the automotive service professional. To date, AMI programs have attracted more than 132,000 enrollments throughout North America. AMI is a not-for-profit educational foundation to which tax-deductible contributions can be made. For more information about the Institute, its curriculum, or EXCEL, please contact AMI at (800) 272-7467 ext. 241, or visit the AMI Web site at www.amionline.org.