Local 104, Foothill College answer college vs. trades question
Career-seekers no longer have to decide between college or the building trades. At the Sheet Metal Workers’ Local 104 and Bay Area Industry Training Fund, they can complete a five-year apprenticeship and earn an associate degree, thanks to a partnership with Foothill College — free of charge.
Apprentices at all five programs in the building trades at the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation (SMART) workers sheet metal apprenticeship in Fairfield, Livermore, San Jose and Castroville, all in Northern California, became eligible last summer, and testing, adjusting and balancing (TAB) apprentices will become eligible this summer. Building trades service apprentices will be able to participate in the program within the year.
Local 104 and Bay Area Industry Training Fund partnered with Foothill College’s apprenticeship division in order to give apprentices credit for five out of seven general education requirements and on-the-job training. Three remaining courses, English, humanities and ethnic studies, are taken by students during their free time either at the training facility or online. All coursework toward the associate degree is free of charge to the apprentice.
“We always say we’re higher education. You hear it all the time. This proves it,” said Tim Myres, Local 104 and Bay Area Industry Training Fund administrator. “Now, we can say when you graduate our program you can have an associate degree as a journeyperson.”
Although college credit was previously given to apprentices for classes completed during the apprenticeship program, out of all the building trades only around five students a year for the last six years would take the extra steps to finish their associate degrees, said Chris Allen, dean of apprenticeship at Foothill College.
“We’ve had two education systems running side by side for too long,” he added. “It’s innovative work to shift the narrative that you have to choose between the building trades and college. This is the work we’ve been doing to really be in front of that. You have to educate the educators, so they can educate the parents. I’m not trying to tell you to choose between the apprenticeship and the college — I work for a college. You don’t have to step off one to do the other. You can do both, and we’re proving it.”
Myres and Allen began working on this project in 2019, when Allen came on board at Foothill College. They, along with apprenticeship training coordinators at Local 104 and academic faculty at Foothill, translated apprenticeship curriculum into language academia could accept.
“We have a core group of faculty who did most of the work, but we couldn’t have done it without the training coordinators,” Allen said. “They know the curriculum upside down and inside out. Their expertise, and how they structured their apprenticeship program, made it easier for faculty to identify the general education requirements in their curriculum.”
“Right now, the program is voluntary for apprentices. My goal is it will not be voluntary,” Myres said. “It will be part of the requirement to become a journeyperson to have this degree.”
Eventually, Myres would like to offer continuing education classes for journeypersons through Foothill College as well.
“That’s the benefit of developing a true partnership,” Myres said. “They see the level of our training and what we do meets the mission of a community’s college. Members of the community can earn an education, work in the community and raise their families on a living wage and prosper in the community.”
ABOUT FOOTHILL COLLEGE
Foothill College, a publicly funded California community college located in Los Altos Hills, has offered degree and certificate programs that prepare students for university transfer and careers since its first classes were held in 1958. The college, known for its dedication to serving students who wish to reskill or upskill, partnered with Local 104 and Bay Area Industry Training Fund as part of its workforce development initiative. The college's Apprenticeship Division, Adult Education, Community and Professional Education are committed to finding and developing talent for local employers. For more information, visit www.foothill.edu.
ABOUT SHEET METAL WORKERS LOCAL 104 AND BAY AREA INDUSTRY TRAINING FUND
Sheet Metal Workers’ Local 104 and Bay Area Industry Training Fund operates five training programs in Fairfield, Livermore, San Jose and Castroville, all in California, offering five-year apprenticeship programs in building trades sheet metal, building trades service and testing, adjusting and balancing (TAB) technician. Two-year programs include air conditioning specialist and service technician apprenticeships.
For additional information visit https://smw104training.org/.
