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Wake County pilot places nine students in tech pre‑apprenticeship with industry certifications
Summary
A five‑week technology pre‑apprenticeship in Wake County engaged nine students in break/fix, infrastructure, infosec and customer service work, awarding high‑school credit and opportunities for vendor certifications (Lenovo, Cisco). Students reported practical skill gains and district staff flagged the program as a pipeline for future hires.
Dr. Thomas and Miss Honeycutt described a five‑week pre‑apprenticeship pilot in the technology department for nine Wake County students that combined 120 hours of hands‑on work with mentorship and industry certification opportunities. The project was supported in part by governor's office WIOA set‑aside funding and included visits to corporate partners and an end‑of‑program capstone and celebration.
One student said of the experience: "I see a path into IT now." Staff said students worked in rotations across break/fix, infrastructure, applications, infosec and customer service and that several students will be eligible to take vendor certification exams at no cost. District leaders framed the program as a "grow‑our‑own" pipeline that could be expanded to other divisions like maintenance and operations.
Presenters recommended continuing and scaling the pilot and promised to return with proposals for expanding internships and pre‑apprenticeships across other departments in future years. Board members and staff suggested tracking certification outcomes and potential hiring pathways as a next step.
