Students get paid while participating in unique program that helps prepare them for supply chain jobs of the future

San Pedro, CA (July 12, 2024)—With sparks flying at a series of workstations, dozens of Harbor area teens demonstrated new skills in welding and construction thanks to their participation in an innovative skilled trades summer program where they get hands-on experience, earn valuable industry-based credentials and get paid.

The programs for teens are offered by the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Los Angeles Harbor (BGCLAH) and Port of Los Angeles High School. Both are part of Skilled Trades Summers, an initiative of Harbor Freight Tools for Schools, the flagship program of The Smidt Foundation.

These Harbor area students learn important foundational skills from experienced skilled trades instructors. At the same time, case managers from the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Los Angeles Harbor with expertise in workforce development provide students with one-on-one support to build employment skills to help them find jobs and achieve employment success.

Harbor Freight Tools for Schools is focused on supporting skilled trades education in Southern California port communities because of the strong workforce development partnerships in the area and the job opportunities in the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach supply chains.

“We anticipate that many of the students who receive their certifications will go on to work within the San Pedro Bay port complex, the nation’s largest,” said Belen Vargas, senior director of Los Angeles County programs for Harbor Freight Tools for Schools. “For many students, a skilled trades education is a pathway to a rewarding career. For others, it helps bring focus and motivation for further academic achievement and prepares them for college.”

During the skilled trades showcase attended by local education, civic and business leaders, students were hard at work on a variety of projects. Six welding stations, as well as two stations each for electrical, plumbing and construction, were buzzing with activity.

“Providing paid opportunities for young people to learn essential skills over the summer is an important part of our City’s workforce development efforts,” said Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. “Harbor Freight Tools for Schools has created an enriching learning experience for young Angelenos to benefit from skilled trades training no matter the career or education pathway they ultimately choose. These are skills Angelenos need to build a bright future for themselves and the City of Los Angeles.”

“I am inspired by the dedication shown by these young people in the Harbor Freight Tools for Schools program,” said Councilmember Tim McOsker. “Through hands-on experience this summer, they are learning valuable skills and, importantly, preparing for a successful career. This program is crucial in fostering talent in our community and meeting the workforce needs in our own backyard, the Port of Los Angeles.”

The BGCLAH has recruited 42 Harbor area students to participate in and complete a 92-hour summer program in welding or construction, where they will prepare to earn valuable industry-based credentials. Many of these students will then have the opportunity to enroll in and complete a more demanding 140-hour school-year skilled trades program.

The school-year program will offer more advanced skilled trades education and prepare them for advanced credentials and certifications, setting students up for success as they graduate from high school. Last month, the Weingart Foundation – in honor of Miriam Muscarolas’ 16 years of impactful service on the Weingart Foundation’s Board of Directors – awarded a $700,000, five-year catalytic grant to strengthen, sustain and grow the school-year skilled trades program. “This program prepares young people for career and life success, and aligns with my deep commitment to education, workforce development, financial opportunity and economic justice,” Muscarolas said.

“These are incredibly demanding programs, and we are proud to recruit, support, and sustain groups of highly motivated high school students who are putting in the hard work to learn skilled trades,” said Mike Lansing, CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Los Angeles Harbor. “Learning these skills in high school enables students to have strong career and educational choices after graduation.”

Employees with these skills are in high demand as Southern California continues to build out its trade, transportation, and electrical infrastructure, and develop commercial-scale campuses to support medical, education, and business uses. Yet, this type of skilled trades education has all but been eliminated in Los Angeles County high schools.

Today, fewer than 1 in 5 public high schools in L.A. County’s 80 school districts offer any type of skilled trades education. Merely 20 schools across the County offer classes in construction and only one offers an electrical course, despite nationwide labor shortages in these high-paying fields. In Southern California, an electrician or entry level utility lineman can earn an annual salary of anywhere from $65,000 to $100,000.

Julianna Espinoza, who participated in last summer’s welding program at Port of Los Angeles High School, said access to skilled trades education in high school is particularly valuable. “This is a great opportunity,” she said. “Why wait until you get to college or outside of high school to take on this new skill when you can do it in high school and already have a head start?”

Students and parents connected to BGCLAH were among more than 1,000 Los Angeles County participants in a recent public opinion survey showing that nearly seven in 10 Los Angeles County high school students would consider taking a skilled trades class if it were offered; and supermajorities of parents would encourage their child to take a skilled trades class, regardless of whether their child was college-bound.

The research, conducted last year by L.A.-based public opinion research firm EVITARUS, found students wanted the opportunity to learn about skilled trades because it could lead to finding a passion, getting internships and other early job experiences.

“We asked students what they want for their future, and we found a deep interest in finding pathways to fulfilling, well-paying careers, such as the skilled trades, that offer them the chance to live and work in their own community,” said lead researcher and EVITARUS managing partner Shakari Byerly.

Receiving skilled trade certifications is unique for high school students and helps put them on a path to a stable, in-demand and good-paying career. Students in the welding program take the American Welding Society certification exam after completing the program.

Students in the construction program are currently learning to build mini homes to learn skills in carpentry, plumbing and electricity. Upon program completion, students take the highly respected National Center for Construction Education & Research certification exam.

To learn more, please visit hftforschools.org.

About Harbor Freight Tools for Schools

Harbor Freight Tools for Schools is the flagship program of The Smidt Foundation, established by Harbor Freight Tools owner and founder Eric Smidt, to advance excellent skilled trades education in U.S. public high schools. With a deep respect for the dignity of these fields and for the intelligence and creativity of people who work with their hands, Harbor Freight Tools for Schools aims to drive a greater understanding of and investment in skilled trades education, believing that access to quality skilled trades education gives high school students pathways to graduation, opportunity, good jobs and a workforce our country needs. Harbor Freight Tools is a major supporter of the Harbor Freight Tools for Schools program. For more information, visit: HFTforschools.org

HARBOR FREIGHT TOOLS FOR SCHOOLS and THE SMIDT FOUNDATION are registered trademarks owned or licensed by The Smidt Foundation.