Straight to Trades Ownership

Pilot program giving BISD vocational students path to business ownership

As a Boerne High School senior in 2006, Michael Ethridge saw the benefits of learning a vocation when he signed up for Dorman Vick’s ag-mechanics welding class.

And now, almost 20 years later, that experience has led Ethridge to team up with his former teacher and offer Boerne Independent School District students a “Straight to Trades Ownership” program.

The initiative gives learners in ag-mechanics programs the basics to create their own business from the ground up, based on their skills and the guidance they receive through Straight to Trades.

It could also close the gap experienced by Texas and the country in not having enough qualified tradespeople, sponsors said.

“This has the potential to change the landscape across this whole state because, just in week three of this 11-week course, these kids are loving it,” Vick said. “They are thriving on it. You can see a sparkle in their eyes that you didn’t see before.”

His time in the welding program all those years ago left warm memories for Ethridge but also planted the seed of the trades-to-ownership program BISD is now launching.

“It was really fun that first year, because we built the program. Not just figuratively, but literally,” Ethridge said. “We had to build half the equipment for the shop. We had to build carts for our welder, we had to build stands for equipment, we had to build the welding tables. It was so exciting.”

Straight to Trades Ownership features two phases: instruction and business savvy. Phase one of the pilot program involves an 11-week business curriculum led by SCORE Chairman Andrew Flippo using his “Hope Builds Life” program.

SCORE initially stood for Service Corps of Retired Executives.

“They have to develop a business on their own,” Vick said, including studying advertising, marketing, borrowing money and more. “In the end, these kids are going to pitch their ideas to local business owners through Das Greenhaus.”

Das Greenhouse is a Boernebased business incubator.

“And there’s going to be money awarded for the winning team, and they will go on and have support through Das Greenhaus,” Vick said.

In phase two, Ethridge said, “Once kids make it through the pitch, we’ll identify the top performers, the ones we think are really serious about starting a business, and we’re going to be able to give them a scholarship-membership to Das Greenhaus.”

He added, “They’ll have resources, they’ll have space to come work, to sit down in a business environment and think about their work and do their work.”

The program brings mentors who present workshops while the pupils build their business.

Community response has been phenomenal, Vick said.

“We make our kids pick these different pathways; we want to bring this into play where we can get these trade kids a vision that they can go own their own companies,” he said.

Partners in the vision in addition to Ethridge and Das Greenhaus include the Greater Boerne Chamber of Commerce and the Boerne Kendall County Economic Development group, the instructor said.

“They all get together and come up with this vision,” Vick said. “It was like, ‘Holy smoke, we just landed in the gold mine on this one.’” Students also see the advantages of the program, he added.

“All of a sudden, they are like, ‘More people are believing in me, and believing I can own the company? Not just make $85,000 a year, but I can own it?’” Vick said.

To keep smoothly functioning, society needs an adequate supply of men and women mastering the trades, officials said.

“Currently, for every five tradesmen who retire, only two are entering the workforce,” Ethridge said. “We’re 500,000 electricians short in this country. We need welders, we need electricians, we need plumbers, all the tradesmen are going to be needed, just to catch up, to where we need to be.”

“There’s so much shortage right now,” Vick added, “our focus needs to be in filling those current gaps that are national.”

Vick said other area schools are watching and ready to develop their own Straight to Trades Ownership training based on the success of BISD’s 11-week pilot program, and the second business-oriented phase.

“We’re fixing to raise the bar a little higher,” he added. “When you watch these kids elevate themselves to that bar, you know we’re changing kids’ lives in a very positive way.”

“You know we’re changing kids’ lives in a very positive way.”

— Dorman Vick, Boerne Independent School District