For too long, students have received the wrong message about what success looks like. Across society and throughout our education system, the traditional college path has been celebrated as the clearest route to opportunity.
To be clear, four-year colleges and advanced degrees will always play a critical role in preparing students for the future. But electricians, plumbers, welders and other skilled professionals build and maintain the infrastructure our communities depend on every day. It is time to stop treating skilled-trades education and training as Plan B. That mindset no longer reflects reality.
Today’s skilled trades offer long-term career growth and economic opportunity that many students and families overlook. Just as importantly, many of the fastest-growing careers in the modern economy now combine technical knowledge, digital literacy and hands-on expertise. The future workforce will need people with both strong technical training and practical experience.
When I was growing up, my public school offered workshop classes. I had the opportunity to explore hands-on skills and different career pathways. Students today often do not have access to those same opportunities.
Many schools have scaled back or eliminated shop and other trades-related courses. Career exploration opportunities have diminished in our high schools. Counselors often receive little or no training on trades pathways, and connections among schools, employers and training providers have weakened.
At the same time, demand for skilled workers continues to grow – and we are experiencing the consequences. Employers are struggling to find qualified workers, while community colleges and technical programs often lack the capacity to keep pace. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects approximately 81,000 openings for electricians each year over the next decade, while the construction industry is expected to need an estimated 349,000 additional workers in 2026 alone.
Employers have long provided training for adult workers, but the scale and urgency of the need are changing. As existing education and training pathways struggle to keep up with demand, more companies are expanding apprenticeships, workforce training and partnerships with schools and community colleges.
Hanwha Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia reflects that shift. Its immersive apprenticeship program introduces young people to career pathways in the maritime and shipbuilding industries. As the company works to dramatically increase production and hire thousands of skilled workers over the next five years, workforce development will be essential to achieving that growth.
That is an important step, but employers cannot be expected to close this gap on their own. If investments in apprenticeships, training and career pathways become the norm rather than the exception, more students will have the chance to see these careers for what they are: pathways to good jobs, steady incomes and genuine economic opportunity.
When people think about AI, they usually think about software engineers, data scientists and technology companies. What they often miss is that AI also depends on physical infrastructure – and on the skilled professionals who bring that infrastructure to life.
It depends on electricians wiring data centers, welders fabricating structural steel, robotics technicians maintaining automated production lines, CNC machinists producing precision components and HVAC specialists cooling thousands of servers.
Data centers could consume as much as 9% of U.S. electricity by 2030. Meeting that demand will require another generation of electricians, construction workers and other skilled professionals to build, expand and maintain the infrastructure that makes AI possible.
AI is also challenging long-held assumptions about which careers are most secure. Geoffrey Hinton, the Nobel Prize-winning computer scientist often called the “Godfather of AI,” recently offered blunt advice to young people concerned about the future of work: “Train to be a plumber.”
He was not literally suggesting that everyone should become a plumber. He was making a broader point: jobs requiring hands-on expertise and real-world problem-solving may be harder for AI to replace than many office-based professions.
NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang made a similar point in a recent commencement address, telling graduates, “Electricians, plumbers, ironworkers, technicians, builders—this is your time.” Coming from two of the most prominent voices in AI, that is a striking endorsement of the trades—and a sign of how seriously the industry building AI takes the shortage of people capable of building its physical foundation.
The high-demand jobs available to young adults today are changing, too. For decades, we have divided careers into “blue-collar” and “white-collar” categories – labels I have never found particularly useful, especially because they can imply a hierarchy that fails to reflect the skill, intelligence and value required across professions.
In today’s workforce, that distinction is not only outdated; it is increasingly inaccurate.
Many of the most important jobs in the modern economy now blend technical expertise, digital literacy, creativity, hands-on execution and practical problem-solving. Trades and STEM education are no longer separate conversations.
Increasingly, the workforce will belong to people who can move comfortably between both worlds: electricians who install intelligent building systems, manufacturing technicians who operate robotics and CNC equipment, and automotive technicians who diagnose software as often as engines.
Advanced manufacturing careers are clear examples of what today’s workforce requires: people who can operate sophisticated technology while applying practical, real-world skills. These robotics and manufacturing careers are not yesterday’s jobs. They are part of where the economy is headed.
Today’s students need more than a narrow definition of college and career readiness. They need exposure to technology-driven careers for which a four-year degree is not the only entry point, including pathways that begin through apprenticeships, industry certifications, community college programs and direct hands-on training.
Yet too many students are never exposed to these careers. If they do not see them, they cannot pursue them.
That is why TGR Foundation is investing in the physical infrastructure for makerspaces and trades studios, while pairing those spaces with career-connected learning experiences across our TGR Learning Labs. We think of them as places where exposure, mentorship, technology and hands-on learning come together.
The goal is not to tell students what they should become. It is to help them explore their interests, discover what is possible and gain the experience, confidence and support needed to pursue it.
A recent example came through our partnership with Genesis Motor America. As part of our summer Career Explorer Academy, students from the TGR Learning Lab in Anaheim visited the new Genesis Design Studio in El Segundo, California. More than 30 local high school students toured the state-of-the-art facility – which is not open to the public – interacted with Genesis engineers and other industry professionals, and learned how design, engineering, technology and product development come together in the automotive industry.
They also saw how ideas move from concept to reality through 3D modeling, clay sculpting and advanced milling technology. For me, that is exactly why career-connected learning matters. Students can see how creativity, technology and practical problem-solving converge within a modern industry.
What is also frequently overlooked is that skilled-trades pathways can lead to entrepreneurship and economic mobility. Many skilled professionals ultimately become business owners, job creators and community leaders.
One of the original members of our Anaheim Learning Lab, Jose Valdez, experienced this kind of exposure firsthand. Jose first joined us for a hard-hat tour with Tiger Woods in 2005, while the facility was still under construction. After it opened, he participated in several STEM-based courses, gaining skills, mentorship and confidence along the way.
In a full-circle moment, Jose now owns IPQ Construction, his own construction company in Orange County. The company’s name reflects the values he learned through TGR Foundation: Integrity, Precision and Quality.
Stories like Jose’s demonstrate why career readiness matters. Skilled-trades careers can create opportunity not only for individuals, but for families and entire communities.
This is not a vision for some distant future economy. The workforce is already changing.
Law, healthcare and education will look different in 20 years. Skilled trades will evolve, too. The institutions that succeed will be those that recognize these changes and prepare students for them.
The future of skilled trades is now, and we have a responsibility to ensure that students can see it, experience it and choose it with confidence.
Preparing students for that future is only half the equation. The other half is ensuring that access to opportunity is available and equitable for every student—the subject of the next article in this series.
This article is part of a series by TGR Foundation CEO, Hrag Hamalian exploring the future of opportunity, education, access and the modern workforce. Read more here: Future of Opportunity for Students: Education, Access and the Workforce Ahead – TGR Foundation.
