Ann Duffett, PhD, is a co-founder and partner of FDR Group, a nonpartisan opinion research company with over 30 years of expertise in focus groups, in-depth interviews, surveys and program evaluations and extensive experience in conducting research with young people. Following five years of Harbor Freight Tools for Schools’ L.A. County Skilled Trades Summers program, FDR Group conducted an independent evaluation of the program. (To see the findings, click here.)

Can you tell us about your research for Harbor Freight Tools for Schools?

I led a qualitative evaluation of Harbor Freight Tools for Schools’ L.A. County Skilled Trades Summers to understand the program’s impact on students. We surveyed 300 students and 100 parents, and I personally interviewed 37 program participants, including current high school students and recent graduates. A clear takeaway from the evaluation is that participating in these skilled trades summer programs is an overwhelmingly positive experience for students.

I also found, without exception, the young people I interviewed were composed, conscientious, responsive, and mature. In a word, they are extraordinary.

What struck you as so “extraordinary” about this cohort of young people?

As a practitioner for 30+ years, I’ve also learned to pay attention to things like body language, eye contact, and enthusiasm.

I was really impressed with this cohort of young people. In the focus groups and in-depth interviews, I found myself surprised by their maturity and confidence. They were also unusually responsible for their age – virtually all arrived on time or early, answered questions thoughtfully, and expressed curiosity about the experiences of others. These soft skills – or better described – “durable skills”—the ability to express oneself, to collaborate, to think ahead, to care about doing things right—are notoriously hard to teach or measure. But these young people had them in spades.

Do you believe that L.A. County Skilled Trades Summers fosters these skills?

As a social scientist, I cannot draw a solid line depicting cause (participation in a skilled trades summer program) and effect (increased maturity, and the like) based solely on these observations. But I can speculate, especially because participation in this program was a common experience among all these students.

For some students, learning real-world, hands-on skills – and getting paid for their work – helps foster maturity, pride, and responsibility in a way that traditional classroom learning simply does not. It gives them self-confidence, develops maturity in many ways, and encourages openness to new things, including careers they may never have considered before. And, importantly, it creates clarity, purpose and excitedness about their future.

One student was so excited about welding and talked to me about how it felt to be identified by his instructor as a leader for the first time in school. I later spoke to his mother who had tears in her eyes telling me about how her son used his graduation money to buy welding tools. It was powerful because he found the path that he knew was going to be his future.

What do you feel is the value of work-based learning as opposed to traditional classroom subjects?

I was struck by how the young people were extremely proud to talk about the work they did. Notably, participants did not refer to it as a summer program – they called it a job – demonstrating to me that they took the experience seriously and recognized that it was quite different than classroom learning. They also expressed tremendous gratitude for their instructors, who they said made them feel like rock stars.

I recall one young man describing how he struggled with wall framing during the program but told himself, “I will do it until I do it well.” Today he says that he applies that same mindset to his job, telling himself when he makes mistakes, he must keep trying until he gets it right.

To me, this shows students felt valued and respected because they were paid, and, thus, were motivated to do the work correctly and take responsibility for the quality of their contributions.

What is your biggest takeaway?

What I saw in these students was remarkable maturity, likely shaped by having met professional expectations typically placed on adults. They no doubt acquired invaluable technical skills, but what I saw was the acquisition of durable skills that will better prepare them for work and life, whatever career they pursue.

These are the qualities I want to see in young people. I would hire these young people!