photo by steed media service

If you’ve always thought college just wasn’t for you, Eric Graves believes he can change your mind. As the provost of the Dawson Technical Institute at Kennedy King College (KKC), Graves offers great money-making alternatives for those who cannot, will not, or don’t yet want to undertake traditional college coursework. It’s called the Entrepreneur and Apprenticeship Program.

Attendees devote 16 weeks to the program, receiving training in either carpentry, plumbing, welding, cement laying or other occupations that enable graduates to earn $22-$25 an hour upon completion. It’s a nontraditional education for the nontraditional student who wants to make traditional money.

“And it’s a life-changing 16 weeks,” Graves adds, “because when you’re done, you will go into a union apprentice job and you will have a career for life.”

Furthermore, Graves says, the training can lead to a very prosperous career for those who like to work with their hands. Individuals who continue may become skilled journeymen.

“As you go through as an apprentice, you become a journeyman. ... Once someone has a craft, they can journey around the world. No one can take that away from [them],” reveals Graves, adding that proprietors also procure assistance. “[There are] courses to help grow their capacity, to help them find financing, and also [to] help them find opportunities for various business interests.”

So, if you don’t want to go to college … enroll in the Apprenticeship Program at Kennedy King College. - terry shropshire

For more information, visit www.kennedyking.ccc.edu.


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