Oregon Public Broadcasting

While the failure of the congressional auto industry bailout package will hit Detroit hard, repercussions are being felt closer to home.

Scott Morgan trains new auto technicians at Portland Community College. He hasn’t been able to place one third of his students at local dealerships, where they usually serve apprenticeships.

Scott Morgan: “It’s difficult for dealerships to take on these students even in a cooperative education format. It costs money to have this employee there, who you’re teaching to train. I mean this isn’t just affecting GM, Ford and Chrysler, it’s affecting everybody, even Honda and Toyota.”

Morgan says his big hope is that the economy turns around by Summer 2010, when his students are expected to graduate.