Two months ago, Jorge Ramirez was working a dead-end retail job that he had no passion for. Today, as a graduate of The Master’s Apprentice, he is a certified electrician and beginning an apprenticeship at an electrical company that he sees as the first step in his lifelong career.
“For me, I was like, if I’m going into this, I’ve gotta put in 100% and hopefully, I get what they’re saying that I can get, which was the job — and I did,” Ramirez said.
The Master’s Apprentice is a Denver-based nonprofit that graduates hundreds of people each year with the skills to become carpenters, electricians, mechanics, plumbers and more from its six-week program. Last year, the program graduated 225 students and boasts an average of about 40% of them finding employment soon after graduation. The program’s success was rewarded in March with a $1 million grant from the Lowes Foundation to increase its capacity.
During The Master’s Apprentice program, students attend classes and visit job sites to find their desired field and learn the necessary skills to enter it. Students are paid up to $100 each week, and a $250 Tool & Book Scholarship upon completion to help offload the time they take off from work to attend. Other financial assistance is available as well.
Recently, the Colorado Pay It Forward Fund, a job training initiative designed to help more Coloradans enter in-demand careers, partnered with The Master’s Apprentice to offer zero-interest loans to help students pay for living expenses as they complete the training.
The program isn’t just about finding employment, but retaining it, said co-founder Luis Villarreal. Through mentorship and practical education, the students learn financial literacy, social skills, a strong work ethic, how to write a resume and other professional skills they will use throughout their careers.
The Master’s Apprentice was born in 2013 out of a desire to solve two problems at once: A low supply of trades workers in the metro area, and to serve a demographic of people struggling to get out of dead-end jobs and into high-paying, rewarding careers.
“We started with men that are struggling these days, particularly young men without a direction. And we thought, how can we find a future for them?” Villarreal said. “We thought that the construction trades were a good avenue where they could earn big money, a trajectory, economic security and social mobility.”
But they’re not in the business of supplying laborers to companies that have no career development opportunities, Villarreal said. The goal is to get people connected to companies with apprenticeship programs that will continue to nourish their skills and goals.
The Master’s Apprentice program directors help participants develop soft skills, such as collaboration, networking, time management and work ethic, Villarreal said. They provide support both during the program and after graduation to help graduates stay focused and driven towards their goals. The staff continues to reach out to alumni, particularly in the few months following graduation, as well as maintain an alumni network that meets regularly.
“It’s kind of like a trampoline,” Villarreal said. “You’ve got all these springs, you fall and the springs bring you back up — it’s a network. If you don’t have a network and you fall, you don’t come up. But the network keeps you engaged, it keeps you going on the right track.”
Finding The Master’s Apprentice turned Ramirez’s life around – not only in his work, but his social network, faith and self-confidence, too. Daily devotionals with the staff helped him reestablish a connection with his faith. He and other students also text in a group chat for general conversation, and to plan fun social events together.
Faith Davis, another recent graduate of The Master’s Apprentice, came into the program with an open mind and ultimately landed on carpentry as her profession. She didn’t know what to expect, especially since the program seemed too good to be true, she said. Davis faced challenges in school figuring out her future trajectory, and disengaged teachers ultimately let her fall through the cracks.
Davis stopped participating in many of her classes starting in the fifth grade, and never finished high school. She had her son in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and knew she wouldn’t be able to handle remote education.
But The Master’s Apprentice helped her find a new passion in carpentry and learn the complex mathematics required in the field. Now, she has a job in carpentry and is working towards her GED.
“It was a classroom setting, but it felt more like a discussion. The teachers actually bothered to care, and sit down and work with me, instead of just looking at me like I was stupid,” Davis said.
The program competed nationally to earn the $1 million grant from the Lowes Foundation, and the staff is putting the money towards more tools and supplies for students, classroom spaces, office spaces, and anything else that will help attract and graduate more students, Villarreal said.
During his 50 years of helping low-income individuals, Villarreal has seen the impact of making small, but consistent, steps towards overcoming obstacles and finding success, he said. It’s encouraging to watch and he hopes that programs like The Master’s Apprentice helps boost the reputation of trade work, which is often looked down upon.
“Our population oftentimes can feel fatalistic, and that the American dream isn’t for them,” Villarreal said. “The American dream is for everyone. It’s equal opportunity, but sometimes equal opportunity has to be surrounded with the right kind of support so it becomes more equal, and becomes more accessible.”
