Almost every building has an electrical power, communications, lighting, and control system that is installed during construction and maintained after that. These systems power the lights, appliances, and equipment that make people’s lives and jobs easier and more comfortable. Participating in Cooperative Education-Capstone, Aiden Simcox, a Level 2-Senior Electrical Construction & Maintenance (ECM) student from Cumberland Valley High School, is learning and earning at EL Heim Company, in field that according to the US Bureau of Labor & Statistics, is projected to grow 6 percent from 2022 to 2032… faster than the average for all occupations!
Aiden applied and enrolled as an ECM student to gain knowledge and skills in a trade that has always fascinated him. It doesn’t hurt that being an electrician is also one of the most lucrative, highest paying skilled-trade careers according to Forbes!
As Aiden advanced through the ECM Program, he decided that the next step for him would be participating in Cooperative Education-Capstone. Co-Op has given him the opportunity to experience the trade outside the walls of CPCTC and has boosted his resume with real work experience, especially in commercial construction. It has also exposed him to a union company whose mission is to employ the highest skilled people in the industry. Aiden’s role at EL Heim Company changes from day to day. Some days, he is completing material runs and taking out trash, while other days he gets to wire motors, terminate or work with conduit. It really depends on what his foreman needs him to do. As he continues his co-op experience with EL Heim Company, he hopes to learn more about electrical theory as his coworkers are always talking about it and it intrigues him! Aiden’s favorite thing about working at EL Heim Company is the people he gets to work with. He appreciates how everyone is always willing to answer his questions and teach him the ins and outs of the trade. His advice to Level 2 students interested in co-op, is to work hard and do not act like you know everything. Learn from the mistakes you make and when other people make mistakes, learn from them, too!
After graduation, Aiden plans to continue learning and earning through the IBEW Local 143 Apprenticeship Program.
