While most students spend all day in class, five seniors from Westerville North High School spend time with the Westerville Electric Division (WED) as part of a paid pre-apprenticeship program aiming to build local talent.
About the program
Amanda Stevens
Starting in June following their junior year, students work through the school year and complete the program upon graduation.
Typically, students attend school and then work at WED from 10:45 a.m. to 5 p.m., though Director of Career and College Readiness Matthew Misener says students can still do extracurriculars.
“(The program is) so flexible with kids’ schedules. After school, if there is a practice or a game, they let them go, so they really work well with the kids,” Misener says.
During their pre-apprenticeship, students rotate working with different crews, including line workers, utility arborists and traffic technicians. A change from last year, students now rotate every few months, giving them more well-rounded exposure to the field.
“(The students) are doing great, and they’re liking the program,” says WED Field Superintendent Todd Head. “They really like the idea of rotating because, at this stage in their life, you don’t know what you don’t know… It just sets them up for what direction they’re going to go after high school.”
WED Electric Utility Manager Chris Monacelli emphasizes that students aren’t doing the work itself, but they’re shadowing and learning on the job site.
“Safety is super important to what we do, so we’re putting these students in a safe environment to learn,” Monacelli says. “We’re not putting them in any dangerous situations, and that’s very important to how we approach this partnership.”
Amanda Stevens
Monacelli shares that students are fully integrated into the workforce and learn important skills, such as communication, teamwork and accountability. Students also can receive in-house training for a commercial driver’s license, which Monacelli says makes students ‘infinitely already more effective in the workforce.’
The pre-apprenticeship sets students up for lining up jobs post-graduation, and some students continue working for WED, though they’re also employable at any other electric division.
Pre-apprentices, past and present
Amanda Stevens
Lemus
Anthony Lemus, a pre-apprentice this year, has spent his first months shadowing arborists before moving to linework.
“I didn’t expect it to be as complicated,” Lemus says. “For arborists, the way they cut down trees has to be a specific way... so it doesn’t hit the line or hit any houses... It’s all very specific.”
Lemus says he wants to see if this is the right path. His friend, Carlos Valdenegro, was one of three students from the program’s inaugural class and spurred Lemus’ interest in the program.
Amanda Stevens
Valdenegro
Valdenegro now works for WED and is pursuing a linework apprenticeship.
“I just told (my friends), ‘Give it a try,’ because I wasn’t even 100 percent sure what I wanted to do going out of high school.” Valdenegro says. “This program guided me towards what I wanted to do.”
Lemus says the biggest adjustment for him was getting up early and working until 5 p.m. As his senior year progresses, he hopes to keep doing his best at school and WED. He also encourages other students to get involved in the program.
“Give it a try. It definitely doesn’t hurt.” Lemus says. “I think it’s a really great opportunity because it’s pretty much a job as well. You get paid to work here and you learn a lot.”
Future pre-apprentices
Amanda Stevens
Head and Lemus
Although the pre-apprenticeship is for seniors, Misener says the program has also attracted interest from younger students. He suggests any students interested in the program in the future maintain their grades and attendance in the meantime.
Misener, Monacelli and Head all anticipate the program growing and recommend that students attend the open house, typically held in March, as it offers an interactive experience and the opportunity to ask questions.
“When we host these open houses, it’s a great time to come in and see what we do,” Monacelli says. “Start to expose yourself to those trades. Get involved early. Start asking questions early.”
Amanda Stevens is an editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
