Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/661417
wrenches. Now all management-lev- el professionals, Calhoun says the group's personal experiences should be reason enough to stand up for their careers and their industry. "This is an industry that supports careers, but we don't talk about it in that way," he says. Dave Williams, former Verizon Fleet Services manager, says its time for that to change. That means actively promoting the industry at every opportunity, and sticking up for it when it is belittled or marginalized. "We need to elevate the profes- sion. To let parents know the kind of opportunities there are in this fi eld," he says. "We don't do a good job raising our level of professionalism." It won't be easy, but Arrants says it can be done. He says technical school admin- istrators and educators are hungry for assistance, and will welcome any knowledge and guidance the indus- try can provide. And when working with a school, he says its important to make sure educators know they need to be teaching more than just workshop skills. Soft skills and STEM (Science, Technology, Engi- neering, Math) courses are invalu- able, he says. "In most schools the only kids that are exposed to [STEM courses] are physics kids, who do it in theory," Ar- rants says. "We have more tech on our trucks than almost anything else that moves in the world." "When you go down on the show fl oor later, look around," Calhoun says. "Everything we do has to do with those STEM course every single day." And he says that's a feature, not a bug, because STEM careers aren't found in low-income industries. The general public has "no idea that there are such lucrative oppor- tunities throughout our world," he says. ◆ April '16 www.studentdriverplacement.com 2 1