Career exposure never came from a high school class, program or internship for him.
In recent years, high schools have begun expanding beyond a college-bound focus to incorporate more career exploration and work-based learning opportunities.
The Greeley-Evans School District 6 has followed this trend to ensure that students can become productive members of their community and transition directly into the workforce after high school, according to Anthony Asmus, assistant superintendent of secondary leadership.
“I think kids at District 6 have amazing opportunities afforded to them,” Asmus said. “Our goal is to prepare our students, not just for a job. It’s really for a sustainable career in our local economy.”
Hiatt, now the president of his family business, Eckstine Electric Co., wants to do his part to give District 6 students what his father gave to him.
CAREER PATHWAYS MEET WORKFORCE DEMANDS
District 6’s five-year strategic plan, Innovation 2030, has a mission to engage “every student in a personalized, well-rounded and excellent education, preparing students to be college and career-ready.”
Career and college readiness efforts include advanced classes, concurrent enrollment through postsecondary partners, internship and apprenticeship opportunities, workforce readiness conferences and more. By the time students reach high school, they can choose from 29 different pathways in 14 different career academies, available at their school or the Career and Technical Education (CTE) Center.
According to a District 6 2025 report to the community, 3,720 students are enrolled in a career pathway program.
Asmus considers graduation rates to be an indicator of college and career readiness success. On-time graduation rates have jumped from 77.1 percent in 2016 to 87.3 percent in 2024, because students feel engaged, have a sense of belonging and thrive in hands-on learning approaches, Asmus said.
“We need to be flexible in our support for our students,” CTE Director Jennie Schilling said. “Not everyone is going down the same path. There are lots of ways to get on the path and stay on the path, it just might look different for some.”
In 2019, voters passed a $395 million bond in District 6 to construct the CTE Center, investing in the next generation of workers and staying on top of local workforce trends.
Students at the CTE Center, which is connected to Jefferson High School at 235 14th Ave. in Greeley, complete a two-year program at no cost to their family in one of five CTE pathways: welding, construction/electrical, cosmetology, cybersecurity and teacher prep. Those accepted into the program split their school days between their home school and the CTE Center, which prioritizes hands-on, work-based learning opportunities.
The school district narrowed down the CTE Center’s pathways through student input on interest areas and an analysis of the local labor market, particularly the 10-year projection of employment needs, Schilling said.
District 6 leaders also continually engage with business and industry partners in the community to hear their needs, Asmus said. Locally, skilled workers for career-based trades are in high demand.
The National Center for Construction Education and Research estimates 41 percent of the construction workforce will retire by 2031. The industry needs an estimated 439,000 new workers in 2025 to meet the demand, according to Associated Builders and Contractors.
The labor shortage impacts Northern Colorado and the Front Range, Hiatt said. On average, about five employees work on one project at Eckstine Electric, which has nearly 20 projects in progress.
Hiatt’s company, which has been in Weld County for 70 years, has been fortunate to retain enough employees to keep up with its workload, but a decline in people entering the field creates hiring difficulties. During the hiring process, he has seen a fair share of young adults still uncertain about whether they want to work in the trade.
District 6 provides career exploration as early as middle school to ensure both future employers and employees feel secure about their choice. And, hopefully, because of the school district’s connections to local businesses and colleges that offer opportunities to high school students, graduates will choose to launch their careers in the community.
“We know that Greeley is going to grow,” Asmus said. “We feel that there is an opportunity for students to get either their certificates or college credit, or get the skills that they need to contribute right here in Greeley.”
The CTE Center just completed its second year with 64 students graduating and entering their postsecondary plans with industry certificates and college credit, according to Schilling. The 2025 graduates who completed the CTE Center’s full two-year program included 14 students in cosmetology, 11 in cybersecurity, seven in electrical and 11 in welding.
So far, 63 percent of students at the CTE Center have earned an industry certificate, the 2025 community report said. Many who depart high school with those certificates in hand become desirable candidates for stable, high-paying jobs.
FILLING THE VOID
By the end of the two-year welding program, which is about 70 percent skill-based learning, students complete the Aims Community College Welding Technician Certificate and receive 45 concurrent enrollment credits, Schilling said. A certificate upon graduation gives them a “leg up” in an industry that always needs workers, according to Joshua Lanning, the CTE welding instructor.
“We are approximately 360,000 workers short,” Lanning said. “We have another 180,000 fixing to retire, and we only have about 125,000 going into the field. There will always be a career in welding.”
Fortunately for the local workforce, the CTE Center’s welding program remains highly sought after, with a waitlist, Schilling said.
Lanning said about 60 percent of welding students go straight into the industry after graduation.
Ava Gonzalaz, who just graduated with more than 45 credits and her welding technician certificate, plans to go into the Navy to work as a steelworker. Gonzalaz, who first entered the welding lab afraid of the trade, now feels prepared for her career based on her real-world experience inside the CTE Center and her former internship at Bentley Welding.
In 2024, more than 170 students participated in paid summer internships, according to the 2025 community report. In addition to internship opportunities, District 6 recently partnered with JBS Corporate to offer apprenticeships.
When Hiatt first heard about the construction/electrical CTE pathway, he jumped into action to provide opportunities for students to learn about the variety of top-notch career paths in his field.
The CTE Center’s construction and electrical students work on job sites or shadow a District 6 electrician one day per week, Schilling said. Those who complete the two-year program earn 35 concurrent enrollment credits in addition to the National Center for Construction Education and Research’s electrical stackable credentials.
Eckstine Electric hosted two interns last summer. This type of early exposure and experience helps teens figure out what they want to do with their lives before they enter the workforce.
At Hiatt’s company, a student intern worked in construction management, the administration side of the business, while another student worked in the field as a premises electrician.
The electrician intern, also participating in the CTE Center, worked as a first-year apprentice, assisting a journeyman on daily tasks, conducting underground conduit installation, pulling wire and performing additional hands-on work for the company.
Hiatt has also led hands-on workshops at the CTE Center to teach students about installing a cable tray and assisting with hazardous locations. The students then applied the knowledge gained and accompanied Hiatt on tours of facilities under Eckstine Electric’s construction.
Hiatt’s involvement with the CTE Center’s construction and electrical pathway also benefits his company and the local workforce. Young interns bring a new perspective, eagerness and curiosity. Interning also gave employees a chance to pass down their experience and knowledge.
Hiatt would hire the intern who worked in the field after graduation because, unlike other young adults bouncing between professions, the student has committed to the trade.
“I think District 6 is helping fill that void by giving them that opportunity to make that decision sooner,” Hiatt said. “Now, when they do graduate, we’re starting to get younger adults wanting to fill out applications, wanting to get into the trade.”
Eckstine Electric has received several applicants from recent graduates of the CTE program, he added.
Schilling compares first-year vs. second-year program participants to measure CTE Center success. Many students who walk through the door on the first day are hesitant about their pathway. But after some time in the program, they develop critical work and life skills, enjoy engaging in school work and become more confident in their abilities. This opens doors for a world of opportunities.
Postsecondary plans among CTE graduates can include more than just launching their career in the pathway they enrolled in. They can pursue additional college credit or industry certificates, attend a four-year university or even work in their pathway while they head down a different career path.
In the cosmetology pathway, students earn 51 concurrent enrollment credits and gain real working experience through open salon hours every Friday. The completion of the pathway program makes them eligible to sit for the Colorado State Cosmetology exam.
Several students in the cosmetology program, including Beyonce Durat and Marely Moran, plan to use their foot in the door and science credits to pursue schooling in the health care profession.
“Entry and exit points for kids were very important to me,” Schilling said about the CTE. “It’s OK that we have cosmetologists wanting to now become nurses.”
Cosmetology instructor Kristen Brink said securing a cosmetology license, often while still in high school, can help students find quick work in a salon or barbershop, even if they want to explore avenues outside of personal care.
And federal data suggest the cosmetology profession will never go out of style. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment of barbers, hairstylists and cosmetologists to grow 7 percent from 2023 to 2033, translating to about 89,100 openings each year.
Student Stephanie Montes wants to have a forever career in cosmetology. During the program, she earned her cosmetology degree and a business certificate in hopes of opening her own salon in Greeley one day.
In the additional pathways at the CTE, cybersecurity students sit for CompTIA industry certificates and earn 24 concurrent enrollment credits. Teacher Prep students receive 24 concurrent enrollment credits and have the opportunity to work as a paraprofessional in District 6 during their final semester of the program.
CTE CENTER GROWTH
Hiatt launched another method of giving back to the CTE Center: the Hiatt Trades-Up Foundation. The nonprofit raised $5,000 last year for materials and tools for the trades.
“I was fortunate enough to have a father in the trade and be able to teach me,” he said. “The CTE is a way … to have these opportunities that some of them may not get. I would like to see it keep going.”
In its second year, Schilling said the CTE Center opened additional seats in the cosmetology pathway and expanded the teacher prep pathway to both a morning and afternoon session. All five pathways remain full, Asmus added.
Enrollment at the CTE Center grew from 100 students in its first year to 142 students this past school year, according to Schilling. Next school year, she anticipates the number to rise to 165 students.
“When you go to District 6, you have a distinct advantage,” Asmus said. “We prepare our students for whatever direction they want to go after high school.”
© 2025 the Greeley Tribune (Greeley, Colo.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
