CFK Keys Currents-2020-21

Career & Technical Education
Building Careers
Just two years ago, Donald Chavez
Moreno was piping frosting on cakes
as a baker at Publix. Today, he is piping
conduit (among other duties) as an
Electrician’s Apprentice for Check Electric,
LLC during the day and studying the
trade at The College of the Florida Keys in
the evenings.
While Donald enjoyed his work as a
baker, he felt unfulfilled professionally and
financially. He was long interested in figuring
out how things worked and had a knack for
hands-on projects. More importantly though,
he wanted a career that would financially
provide for the future of his growing family.
Donald, a Key West High School graduate,
and his wife, Adinay, had just welcomed a
baby boy, Adrien (now 1), joining their
older son, Aidan (now 4).
A friend of Donald’s, who is a Master
Electrician, suggested the electrical trade as
a smart career move and encouraged him
to enter CFK’s Electrical Apprenticeship
program. Classes would be free, and he would
earn a paycheck (with built-in raises) while
gaining real-world experience. Donald was
convinced by the “earn while you learn”
model and enrolled in CFK’s Construction
Technologies Apprenticeship program.
Donald was placed with Check Electric
in Key West, under the tutelage of veteran
electrician Ron Leonard. Leonard is also
the chair of the College’s Apprenticeship
Advisory Committee and an instructor.
“Donald sets an example for his
classmates as well as his colleagues who have
been in the business for years. No matter
what task he’s given, you can be sure it’s
done right, it’s done neatly, and it’s done
safely,” said Leonard.
In turn, Donald credits his classes for
helping him excel on the job. “Mr. Leonard
teaches the code book really well. I actually
understand what I am doing and why when
I go to work each day because of what we
do and discuss in class.”
Learning concepts in class while
developing practical skills on the job is just
as important to the businesses that sponsor
apprentices as it is to the apprentices
themselves. “In a field where inexperience
could cost a business its reputation or
worse, serious injury, it’s more attractive
for a company to hire and train a new
employee who is also studying concepts and
safety in a class setting,” said Leonard.
In addition to electricians, CFK
trains plumbers, carpenters, and HVAC
technicians. According to the U.S. Bureau
of Labor and Statistics, professionals in
these fields earn approximately $48,000
to $56,000 annually, on average, and job
growth is expected. Meanwhile, in the
Keys and across the nation, contractors
struggle to hire and retain enough workers
to keep up with demand.
The need to grow the local construction
workforce was exacerbated by Hurricane
Irma in 2017. Residences and businesses
throughout the Keys required repair and
re-building, but local contractors were
hard-pressed to find enough employees with
the necessary skills to get the job done.
Quick to respond to community needs,
the College collaborated with local
government and local contractors as well
as Florida’s Department of Education and
the U.S. Department of Labor to develop
training programs.
Initially, the College launched its
Construction Technologies Apprenticeships
in Key West in 2018. And with a $2,553,653
boost from the Florida Department of
Economic Opportunity’s (DEO) Rebuild
Florida Workforce Recovery Training
Program, CFK is extending the opportunities
to the middle and upper Keys in 2021.
“Employees are hard to come by in
our specific field,” said Mary Roth, Office
Manager of Rex Air, a local air conditioning
service company in Islamorada. “It seems like
more kids are going for traditional college
degrees and not seeing that they can make
good money and have solid careers in a trade.”
An early advocate for the College’s
Apprenticeship programs, Roth coordinated
the effort for Rex Air to sponsor several
HVAC apprentices who will start this
January. Notably, among the first class of
upper Keys apprentices will be her son,
Payton, a senior at Coral
Shores High School. Payton’s
summertime job at Rex Air
sparked his interest in HVAC.
He will begin taking classes in
the evenings in January and
add the on-the-job-training
component after he graduates
from high school.
Upon successful program
completion, an apprentice
earns the title of “journey
worker,” a four-level certification
by the National Center for
Construction Education and
Research (NCCER), as well
as a nationally-recognized
Completion of Apprenticeship
certificate by the State of Florida.
Unlike most graduates who
embark on a job search after
graduation, apprentices are
already years into a career,
have a robust resume, and have
earned raises by the time they
receive their diploma. They
are well poised to advance
to management positions or
continue training to start their
own practice.
For Donald, his apprenticeship
experience thus far has motivated
him to set his sights on ultimately
becoming a Master Electrician.
And he is looking forward to the
challenge with confidence, saying
“Once you are doing what you
love, you can get there.”
Electrical apprentice Donald Chavez Moreno (left)
checks an electrical panel with guidance from
Ron Leonard (right), CFK instructor and Check
Electric supervisor.
24 KEYS CURRENTS A PUBLICATION OF THE COLLEGE OF THE FLORIDA KEYS
A PUBLICATION OF THE COLLEGE OF THE FLORIDA KEYS KEYS CURRENTS 25