I’ve been interested in design and marketing for as long as I can remember. According to my mom, it began as soon as I could hold a pencil. There's a photo of me in a high-chair, drawing “perfect circles,” as she liked to recall.

Throughout my childhood I was so inspired by Walt Disney’s incredible storytelling that I dreamed of animating movies for the company one day. When PIXAR arrived on the scene, my fascination turned to the many unique ways in which a story could be conveyed visually.

I’m not sure that as a child I ever decided what I wanted to be when I grew up. But now, I know I’m where I’m supposed to be.

The path to my career wasn’t what you would call “traditional.” I earned average grades in high school and felt that a four-year college just wasn’t the right choice for me. I tried community college for a year and a half because it felt like everyone was going to school, but it just wasn’t what I was looking for.

I've been around vehicles my entire life. As soon as I could walk and talk, my passion for the automotive industry began to develop.

You could say it’s in my blood — my dad has always been a gearhead, too. He owned and managed shops that worked on semi trucks and he had muscle cars as a hobby. I always looked up to him and his friends in the industry, mesmerized by how they could tear a whole car or engine apart and put it back together just like new. On the weekends, I watched them at nearby racetracks.

At his previous jobs, Seth Brooks went through the motions and couldn't wait until the weekend. But thanks to the Auto Collision Repair program at Salina Area Technical College, he now looks forward to Mondays.