The Golden Age of Apprenticeships: Reimagining Careers in Woodwork Manufacturing

Future Insight Vodcast – Episode 12Special Vodcast Edition of the April 2022 Podcast Interview

Guest: Professor Kelly Victor-Burke, Lecturer III, Co-Director of the Geotourism & Historic Preservation Program Emerita, Eastern Michigan University

Host: Dr. Dean Cantu, Dean, College of Health, Education, and Human Sciences, University of Arkansas–Fort SmithTopic: Registered Apprenticeships, Educational Partnerships, and Vision Casting

Original Air Date: April 2022

“We can’t find qualified workers.”

It is a familiar concern across manufacturing and the skilled trades. But what if the challenge is not simply a shortage of workers? What if it is also about how industries introduce themselves to the next generation—and how clearly they demonstrate the pathways available to meaningful, well-paying careers?

In this episode of Future Insight, host Dr. Dean Cantu speaks with Professor Kelly Victor-Burke about a new approach to apprenticeships in the woodworking industry and the important role that educational partnerships can play in workforce development.

Their conversation offers a compelling case for what Victor-Burke describes as a new “golden age of apprenticeships”—one built around stronger connections among employers, educators, students, families, and communities.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxBX1QjLOI0

From Higher Education to a New Apprenticeship Model

Victor-Burke brings an unusual perspective to workforce development. Her professional journey took her from higher education into the woodworking industry, where she co-founded Burke Architectural Millwork and became involved in addressing one of the industry's most persistent challenges: developing the next generation of skilled professionals.

That work contributed to the development of a 21st-century U.S. Department of Labor registered apprenticeship for Woodwork Manufacturing Specialists.

Rather than treating apprenticeships simply as job-training programs, the model demonstrates how structured, competency-based learning can create a bridge between education and employment. Apprentices gain practical skills and industry experience while employers develop talent aligned with the real needs of the workplace.

Changing the Perception of Manufacturing

Developing an apprenticeship program is only part of the solution. Young people also need opportunities to discover these careers in the first place.

That means employers and educators must reconsider how manufacturing and skilled-trade careers are presented to students.

Woodworking, for example, combines craftsmanship, technology, design, problem-solving, and creativity. Yet students may never encounter those possibilities unless industry professionals actively bring their work into schools and communities.

Victor-Burke's approach offers a practical framework for doing exactly that.

The Five S’s of Apprenticeship Advocacy

One of the most actionable ideas from the conversation is a five-part strategy for helping employers and educators engage the next generation.

1. School It

Build relationships with schools and educational systems. Connecting directly with students, teachers, counselors, administrators, and community leaders can help young people understand career opportunities they may never have considered.

2. Show It

Make the work visible. Social media and other visual platforms can showcase raw materials, craftsmanship, technology, finished products, and the people behind them. Seeing how something is created can transform an abstract occupation into an exciting career possibility.

3. Sell It

Passion matters. Employers should communicate not only what the work involves but also why it matters. Prospective apprentices need to see that they will be respected, supported, challenged, and given opportunities to grow.

4. Send It

Provide clear information about how to enter the profession. Students and families need understandable pathways showing how apprenticeships, training, employment, and career advancement connect. These resources can also demonstrate that a traditional four-year college degree is not the only route to a successful and fulfilling career.

5. Survey It

Measure whether outreach is working. Surveys and other forms of feedback can help organizations determine whether students' perceptions change after they encounter industry professionals, demonstrations, career information, or apprenticeship opportunities. Measurement turns outreach from a good intention into an evidence-informed workforce development strategy.

Building Stronger School-to-Career Pathways

The larger lesson extends well beyond woodworking.

Registered apprenticeships can provide a powerful transition from school to career by combining structured learning with authentic workplace experience. At the same time, partnerships between schools and employers can help students see possibilities that traditional educational pathways may not always make visible.

For students, apprenticeships can provide a clearer route into a profession. For families, they expand the range of credible postsecondary options. For employers, they offer a sustainable way to cultivate skilled talent rather than waiting for qualified workers to appear.

Perhaps most importantly, these partnerships encourage a broader conversation about what career readiness really means.

The future of workforce development may depend not simply on asking, “Where can we find qualified workers?” but on asking a different question:

“How can we help the next generation see, enter, and succeed in the careers that need them?”

That shift—from searching for talent to intentionally developing it—is at the heart of the apprenticeship model explored in this episode of Future Insight.

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