TAMPA, Fla. — Nationally, enrollment at four-year colleges and universities is dipping. But the opposite is happening at trade schools, and locally, the Learning Alliance is taking advantage of this and offering high school students a chance to “earn and learn.”
Cesar Ruiz is the CEO of the Learning Alliance, a Telecom Training Center. He was originally enrolled and attended St. Pete College but never graduated; instead, he found his calling in the trade of telecommunications.
“I don’t have a four-year degree, but I have the privilege to take the next generation, to take my kids and raise them in the upper class, because of these opportunities,” explained Ruiz.
Today, Ruiz oversees a group of high school students who are getting a small taste of what a career in this field is all about.
“We need the youth to not think that the trades is a dirty word. We need people to know there’s a career in 5G, you don’t need 80,000 in debt and you can start right now,” said Ruiz.
Right now, the telecom industry is exploding. Ruiz said the need for men and women to install or repair cell phone towers is growing at an incredible rate.
“We’re 20,000 men and women short right now, with an estimated 100,000 in the next five years, so unless we educate the youth, how will they know there’s an opportunity for them?” Ruiz said.
The Learning Alliance is partnering with Career Source for the week-long exploration program. They currently have recruited 65 students from local high schools to take part.
And the best part? Besides learning new skills, these kids earn while they learn. Each gets $13 an hour just to be in attendance.
Luis Gonzalez is a senior at Springstead in Hernando County. Although he is committed to USF next fall, this program and the trade of telecommunications are opening his mind to new opportunities.
“I like the amount of options that this summer trades program is giving me. That’s all I can say,” explained Gonzalez.
Starting pay for a job in this field is $50,000, with a path to nearly double that in the first four years. The Learning Alliance says 91% of their graduates get a job, and Navy veteran Logan Katz is hoping to be part of that percentage.
“To me, this is a career field. This is something where I’m going to restart my life and reset. It’s an entirely new field for me, I’m absolutely loving it, so if I can continue to do it and not do it at home, I’ll continue to love it for the next 20 years,” said Katz.
Katz was a mechanic for nearly a decade and said he lost his passion for anything automotive in his personal life. So, telecom really struck his interest because that’s not something he’s going to do in his spare time.
You can learn more about the programs offered at the Learning Alliance here.
