Bedford, Texas, Sept. 17, 2007 ¬— The Automotive Management Institute (AMI) and the Automotive Service Association (ASA) jointly announced today that Jennifer Justice-Haley, co-owner of Mercedes Benz of West Chester, Amelia, Ohio, is the recipient of this year’s Richard Cossette/Gale Westerlund Memorial Scholarship.

Haley has worked in the collision industry for more than 23 years and has been a shop owner for the past two years. She is a member of ASA and the Women’s Industry Network (WIN). Haley currently serves on the ASA Ohio Legislative & Insurance Committees and the WIN Board of Directors. She is also active in her local community and church.

Richard Cossette owned Lehman’s Garage in Minneapolis, Minn., and was a charter founder of AMI and a $50,000 Charter Counselor contributor to AMI’s resource development effort EXCEL. He was the first chairman of EXCEL and was a recipient of AMI’s Annual Recognition Award in 1994. He was awarded an honorary Accredited Automotive Manager (AAM) designation in 1997 to further recognize his commitment and dedication to AMI. He also held numerous leadership positions on the ASA board of directors and was active in several industry organizations until his death in 2002.

Westerlund owned and operated Gale’s Auto Center in Blaine Minn., and was a $25,000 Guarantor contributor to EXCEL. He earned the Institute's AAM designation in 1993, and also served on the ASA board of directors for many years. He was an active member of ASA and other collision industry organizations until his death in 2005.

As the scholarship recipient, Haley will receive $1,000 to help cover expenses to attend educational sessions and view the latest repair technologies and equipment during the 2007 International Autobody Congress & Exposition (NACE), Oct. 31 - Nov. 3, in Las Vegas.

“It is a great honor to receive this scholarship. I whole-heartedly believe in the value of the AMI program and the structure of its curriculum to enhance my ongoing education in collision shop management,” said Haley.

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 160,000 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 http://www.AMIonline.org.