This year marks a major shift in how America thinks about skilled trades education.
For years, one of the biggest barriers to entering the skilled trades wasn't a lack of opportunity, it was a lack of awareness and access. Many students pursuing traditional college degrees could often rely on well-established financial aid pathways.
However, aspiring tradespeople with shorter-term workforce training often depended on scholarships, employer support and industry-led initiatives to help them get started.
That's why programs like DeWalt's Grow the Trades initiative have been so important.
As of July 1, eligible short-term workforce training programs, including many in the skilled trades, can now qualify for Workforce Pell Grants. This opens federal
financial aid to students pursuing career-focused education outside the traditional four-year college path.
The federal government is beginning to recognize what employers have known for years — careers in the skilled trades deserve the same attention and investment as other postsecondary pathways.
As millions of students and families begin planning for life after high school, that's welcome news. For too long, the conversation has started with one question: Where are you going to college?
I think we're asking the wrong question. Instead, let's ask: What's the best path to a rewarding career? For me, that answer was carpentry.
Today, at 22, I own a successful business in Florida doing residential construction, and in September I'll represent the United States in carpentry at WorldSkills, the premier trades competition.
Every day I remodel and renovate client homes and make their dreams a reality. Soon, I'll compete against the world's best skilled trades professionals while representing Team USA, with support from professional carpentry coaches, pro tools from DeWalt and more.
My path didn't begin in a lecture hall. It began with learning a craft, working with my hands and discovering that the skilled trades offered something I wanted — the opportunity to build a career, own a business and create something meaningful. Unfortunately, too many students never hear that story.
For decades, we’ve treated the skilled trades as a backup plan instead of what they really are: one of the most direct, rewarding and essential paths to a successful career. That mindset no longer matches reality. America needs more builders, electricians, welders, plumbers and technicians, and students need more pathways that lead to real opportunity.
That’s why this moment matters. With workforce shortages growing, demand for skilled professionals rising and new access to federal aid through Workforce Pell Grants, more young people can now see the trades for what they truly offer: strong earnings, entrepreneurship, purpose and the chance to build something tangible every day.
If you’re a student thinking about what comes next, the question shouldn’t be whether the trades are good enough — it should be whether you’re ready to step into a career that is needed, respected and full of possibility. For a lot of people, there has never been a better time to join the trades.
Tristan Coates is a builder, business owner and DeWalt-sponsored WorldSkills Team USA athlete. He lives in Jacksonville.
This guest column is the opinion of the author and does not necessarily represent the views of the Times-Union. We welcome a diversity of opinions.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Trades help Jacksonville man build business, find purpose | Opinion
