SANTA
MONICA, Calif., July 10,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- This year, the mikeroweWORKS
Foundation is awarding $2.4 million
in work ethic scholarships to more than 300 aspiring tradespeople.
As in past years, 2024 recipients include a broad mix of plumbers,
electricians, welders, mechanics, pipe fitters, HVAC specialists,
blacksmiths, cosmetologists, and many other skilled workers seeking
to enter careers that don't require an expensive four-year
degree.
"It's been really gratifying to help train the next generation
of skilled tradespeople," said Mike
Rowe, CEO of mikeroweWORKS. "The opportunities to prosper in
the trades today are astonishing, and shining a light on those
opportunities has been a real privilege."
With this latest round of scholarships, Rowe's foundation will
have awarded nearly $12 million in
work ethic scholarships to more than 2,000 Americans, making
mikeroweWORKS the largest trade school scholarship fund in the
country. Along with its scholarship program, mikeroweWORKS is also
leading the charge to reinvigorate the trades by challenging the
myths and misperceptions that keep so many people from exploring a
vocational career.
"It's not enough to simply award scholarships to qualified
applicants," said Rowe. "If we really want to close the skills gap,
we need to change perceptions in the broadest possible way. That
means better PR for the trades. We need to show Americans that lots
of skilled tradespeople are making a very comfortable six-figure
salary, setting their own schedules, and finding real meaning and
fulfillment in their work."
For nearly a decade, the ratio of baby boomers retiring to those
entering the workforce has been 5:2, according to Skillwork. The
resulting "skills gap" has widened, and the Bureau of Labor
Statistics reported in May that there are 8.1 million open
positions—the majority of which do not require a four-year
degree—and caused a labor shortage that's left our workforce
profoundly out of balance. Meanwhile, the cost of college has
soared, leaving nearly 44 million Americans with $1.6 trillion in student loan debt. And yet, high
school graduates are still encouraged—often by well-meaning parents
and guidance counselors—to borrow vast sums of money to attend
universities that continue to raise their tuition, leaving millions
indebted and untrained for the many vocational jobs waiting to be
filled.
"Ever since we took shop class out of high school, we've been
telling our kids that the best path for the most people is a
four-year degree," said Rowe. "And for decades now, we've been
lending money we don't have to kids who can never pay it back, so
they can buy a diploma that no longer guarantees them a job. That
has to stop. At mikeroweWORKS, we're telling an honest story about
college debt, and making a persuasive case for the many
opportunities that exist in the skilled trades. That's what we've
been doing since Labor Day of 2008, and that's what we'll be doing
this Labor Day. And hopefully, for many Labor Days to come."
For more information about the mikeroweWORKS Foundation, visit
mikeroweworks.org.
View original
content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-mikeroweworks-foundation-surpasses-11-million-in-trade-scholarships-302193814.html
SOURCE EPIC Agency LLC