The pendulum may be swinging back from the decades-long, all-out press to push high school graduates toward college as the only path to success. Now, as much of our skilled-trades population approaches retirement, the push is on to offer students an alternate path outside of a college education or perhaps with employers paying their way to those degrees.
Hundreds of students who attended the Student & Apprentice Summit at the ServiceTitan Elite Trades Championship Series in West Palm Beach, Florida, were given a glimpse into the possibilities that could await them in the trades.
Representatives from the plumbing, HVAC, electrical and auto tech industries presented students from throughout Palm Beach County School District with the opportunities in those fields–and some hands-on experience as well.
In a survey of students conducted during the summit, 42% of the 337 who responded said a “four-year university” was their plan after high school. However, the second most common response was “trade school” at 19%, followed by “community college” with 12.5%.
Stephen Leach, a senior in the HVAC Academy program at Royal Palm Beach High School, said he’s confident the trades are for him.
“I decided to do this because of my parents. My parents have always been very supportive. I’ve always been very good with my hands. I’m smart, but I’ve not been able to be the type of person who’s able to sit down in a room and wait for a long time,” Leach said, “I’m an active person. I like to do stuff with my hands, and thanks to my parents driving me to Royal Palm Beach, a choice program, I’ve been able to not only learn this trade in high school, but I’ve been able to get a job with Palm Beach County.”
Leach said the academy program led to his work with the county, which in turn led to him earning a scholarship so he can go to college while working as an HVAC technician for the county.
This is the kind of opportunity that organizers of the event want students and parents to know about.
Spreading the Word
Sarah High is the Senior Apprenticeship Coordinator for Moss Construction based in Fort Lauderdale, and she spoke to teachers at the summit about the message they can share with students as they weigh their options for the future.
“This is an opportunity for your students to grow, continue their education and earn while they learn,” High said. “When you think about construction apprenticeships you want to be able to say to your students this is an opportunity for you to earn while you learn. And if they say, ‘I want to go to college,’ I want you to remember this — I have a bachelor’s degree, I have a master’s degree and also, I’m a master electrician and my degrees were paid for by my employers. (With the trades) your employer is ready to invest in you because the better you are at your trade, the better you can serve your employer.”
High went on to say, “They don’t care if you’re a woman, if you’re blue or purple. Employers want people who want to be there and want to learn and grow.”
Breyonna Weatherington, the Academy Coordinator at Royal Palm Beach High School, said when she’s talking to the kids, she tells them, “They are blessed that they don’t just have to go to college. It’s not just being a lawyer, doctor, or teacher anymore. That’s what I was taught when I was coming out of high school,” Weatherington said. “But now you get the opportunity in high school to train. You’re still doing math, reading, and writing, but you are also getting to train for a field job. It’s almost a guaranteed job out of high school.”
Weatherington said parents are slowly starting to come around to this idea. She said it’s about a 50/50 split between those parents who still favor college over going into the trades, but more parents seem to be getting on board with the idea of other pathways.
“When I first started in 2020 parents were more like … I don’t know,” she said. “But now going out and promoting these programs and having info graphs with how much kids can make coming out of high school, I feel like when (parents) see those numbers they’re like wait, maybe this is something good for my kid.”
The Student & Apprentice Summit survey results confirmed that support.
Students were asked “How do your peers and/or family react to those interested in working in the trades?”
On a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being “very supportive” and 1 being “dismissive”, most students responded above a “4” (67%), with 40.2% responding with a “5”.
“There are some people that are skeptical or critical of it because the stigma used to be that if you didn’t go to college you would end up working in construction, which used to be seen as a negative thing,” Leach said. “But now we’re so much more advanced in these types of fields. I can be making six figures as an HVAC technician without even having any student debt.”
Some of the advancements Leach and others at the summit referenced are the use of technology in the trades. Today’s trade jobs are quite high-tech, which is a big draw for young people looking to start their career. In the summit survey they were asked, “Is it important that your career involves technology in some way?” 60.7% of students responded that it is necessary for technology to be involved in their career.
Tayshaun Carridice, a senior at Glades Central High School, takes part in the Construction Academy at West Technical Education Center there. He discovered his passion for electronics by taking apart game consoles and helping friends repair their gaming controllers. Carridice said he’s decided to pursue being an electrician.
“People are supportive. They usually say that it’s a good choice and there’s not enough tradesmen out there, so they say pursue that dream,” Carridice said. “I’m excited about the money and also just connecting electronics and seeing them work.”
Exploring their Options
In speaking about the various academy options offered throughout Palm Beach County School District, Dr. Jeraline Johnson, Director for Choice and Career Options for the district said, “We’re giving students an opportunity early on to explore and apply knowledge and skills at something they think they might like to do — to determine if they want to continue, go in a slightly different direction, or decide they don’t like it at all. So, they’ve had an opportunity to explore it for free before they make those very expensive decisions to go to college.”
Tom McConahay, a senior manager at Rheem, a plumbing and HVAC manufacturing company, gave the plumbing presentation at the summit.
“I can’t tell you how many plumbers I know that have four-year degrees, only to realize it wasn’t for them — and ended up getting into plumbing afterward,” McConahay said. “They have $100,000 worth of debt and they didn’t want to sit behind a desk, so it wasn’t the right career path for them.”
His message resonated with Tahlar Grant and Haillie Panton, both juniors in the Construction Class at Santaluces Community High School who like the idea of being women in the trades.
“If you would have asked me a few years ago I would never have said that,” Grant said about her interest in plumbing. “But the presentation today really showed me what a great option it is for me.”
Panton agreed. “I don’t want to go to college,” she declared. “I want to go to trade school. The money is great. I want to go straight out of high school to trade school. College is too much money.”
Germaine Way, a sophomore at Glades Central, said he came to the Student & Apprentice Summit to learn more because he’s thinking about signing up for one of the trades academies at West Tech.
“I see a lot of older people now with college debt, and I don’t want to have to deal with that,” Way said. “So, if I do go to trade school, that would be one major benefit I’d be happy about.
He said he particularly enjoyed the hands-on elements of the summit programming.
“I expected to be lectured, but I actually got a hands-on experience. They taught me, and I really enjoyed it,” Way said. “I just wish I had a little extra time.”
