Graduates to begin good-paying careers without college debt
The ABC Commercial Construction Prep Academy in Fishers held a paid internship and full-time employment signing day event last Friday, and it was an unmitigated success.
ABC Director Robert Kneberg was kind enough to arrange for The Reporter to speak with four of his graduates on signing day, just moments after they had each accepted job offers.
Sarah Snell signed to work full-time for Jack Laurie Group after graduating from the ABC program, which she attended during her senior year in high school.
“We learned a lot about safety, we learned a lot about the three trades – carpentry, electrical and plumbing,” Snell said. “I found the career I wanted to in just a single school year. It was very eye-opening. It was a very informative year. You learn a LOT! You go through a lot of different things. At the end of it I’m going into a fulltime job with full pay and benefits without having to go in debt and go through those long years of college.”
ABC graduate Caden Drish told The Reporter he wasn’t sure what to expect at first, but he is very pleased with the program itself and what it has done for him.
“At first I was a little nervous because there were so many people around,” Drish said. “It was a lot of new faces, but as the year went on, I got more comfortable. It was a lot of fun getting experience with new tools and learning how to use them on projects.”
Drish realized he wanted the options offered at ABC early in his senior year.
“I realized school wasn’t for me,” Drish said. “I’m more of a hands-on kind of guy. I realized I wouldn’t have too much fun sitting in a classroom every day for four years straight, so I realized I could use my skills somewhere else. That’s why I went to the workforce.”
Drish heard about the ABC program from his counselor at Hamilton Southeastern High School. Now he will begin his career with Patterson Horth.
Nery Escalante signed up with Gaylor Electric for a full-time position.
“I knew the whole time I wanted to work in electrical,” Escalante said. “This was my goal.”
Avion Rush also has a job waiting for him at Gaylor Electric and plans to begin his career in June. Unlike Escalante, Rush didn’t know he wanted to work in the electrical field when he came to ABC.
“I basically figured it out along the way,” Rush said. “We did all three of the reads. We did some electrical, some plumbing, and some carpentry. I really feel like I related to electrical. I like what it can do for me in the long run. I like the tediousness of it, and I like that is requires using my brain a lot.”
Rush said the instructors were the key to his success.
“I really love the instructors,” Rush said. “They’re just really good people. They made sure that I was set up properly, that all my classmates are set up properly. They reached out to me, and they just kept on reaching out. There was never I time when I felt like they don’t care. It was continuous. They were like, ‘How are you doing? Hey, I heard you wanted to sign with this company. Do you need any help with that?’ And they just kept on going. I really appreciate it.”
You can learn more about ABC’s mission, vision and programs online at tinyurl.com/ABCprepacademy.
Reporter photos by Nik Roberts