RSI 50th Anniversary

Starting in January 2015, The Refrigeration School, Inc. (RSI), located in Phoenix, Arizona, will celebrate its 50th year of training technicians for in-demand careers in heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R). As the largest HVAC/R school in the nation*, RSI has maintained its focus on providing high-quality, hands-on climate control and refrigeration technician training as the core curriculum the entire 50 years. It is estimated that over 10,000 students have graduated from RSI, with over 470 of those graduating in 2014.

RSI was founded as the Modern School of Refrigeration in 1965 and purchased by Edwin Loney Sr. and his wife, Ola Lee Loney. Edwin Loney Sr. recognized the need for trained HVAC/R technicians as Phoenix began to experience significant growth and the technician base was not able to keep up. As a WWII veteran, Loney understood the value of military-style training and revised the curriculum to be similar, making it easier for students to learn and retain the subject matter. In the late 1990s, ownership transferred to the Loney children and was maintained in the family until RSI was sold to Tulsa Welding School Acquisition Corporation in 2009.

When asked about RSI’s historic celebration, Campus President Stephen Malutich responded, “The entire RSI staff and instructor team are proud and honored to be carrying forward into the next half-century the outstanding legacy of this school, which was established in 1965. We feel a career as an HVAC/R technician is a rewarding and professionally satisfying one, and each of us gets great satisfaction from our part in changing our students’ lives in a positive way. And, 50 years after the first class of students entered RSI, we are still ‘The Cool School’!”

RSI’s current student population is over 450 with students having come from as far away as Alaska to attend classes. The school has many services to offer students, such as financial aid for those who qualify and graduate employment assistance. Curriculum includes training in heating, ventilation, air conditioning, refrigeration (HVAC/R), solar technologies, and residential and commercial electrical wiring. RSI also offers an advanced-level occupational associate degree program with a focus on mechanical maintenance engineering.

RSI will hold a 50th Anniversary Open House on April 11, 2015, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. The public is invited to attend. For more information, visit rsi.edu or call (602) 275-7133.