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Members of the first class of the Caterpillar Youth Apprentice Program in welding worked at Caterpillar Inc.’s Sanford Fabrication Facility during the summer. The high school seniors are now in their second, and final, year of training at the facility and through Central Carolina Community College at the Lee County Innovation Center. Pictured at the Center (not in order) are Josef Piper, Allen Gautier, James Kirik, Taylor Lett, and Briana Peterman, all of Lee County High School; and George Afaro, Steven Bouldin, Biagio Esposito, James Hilliard, Antonio Murchison, Ashley Stack, Andrew Stamper, and Anthony Woodlief, all of Southern Lee High School. The two-year program is a collaboration among Caterpillar, CCCC, Lee County Schools, and the N.C. Department of Labor. The NCDOL recognizes it as a registered youth apprentice, the second largest in the state. The goal of the program is to train high school students for critical, high-demand, well-paying careers in welding, as well as to help provide the skilled workforce Caterpillar and other modern industries need. For more information about the Caterpillar Youth Apprentice in Welding, contact Lee County Schools Career Development coordinators Brooke Rice, at Southern Lee High School, brice.ls@lee.k12.nc.us, or Alison Poole at Lee County High School, apoole.ls@lee.k12.nc.us.

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Ashley Stack welds a part on a skid steer loader at Caterpillar Inc.’s Sanford Fabrication Facility. Stack, a Southern Lee High School student, is participating in the Caterpillar Youth Apprentice Program in welding that prepares students for careers in welding. The two-year program is a collaboration among Caterpillar, Central Carolina Community College, Lee County Schools, and the N.C. Department of Labor. The NCDOL recognizes it as a registered youth apprentice, the second largest in the state. The goal of the program is to train high school students for critical, high-demand, well-paying careers in welding, as well as to help provide the skilled workforce Caterpillar and other modern industries need. For more information about the apprentice, contact Lee County Schools Career Development coordinators Brooke Rice, at Southern Lee High School, brice.ls@lee.k12.nc.us, or Alison Poole at Lee County High School, apoole.ls@lee.k12.nc.us.

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Jimmy Kirik, an apprentice in the Caterpillar Youth Apprentice Program in welding hones his skills during a Central Carolina Community College welding class at the Lee County Innovation Center. The two-year apprentice program is a collaboration among Caterpillar, CCCC, Lee County Schools, and the N.C. Department of Labor. The NCDOL recognizes it as a registered youth apprentice, the second largest in the state. The goal of the program is to train high school students for critical, high-demand, well-paying careers in welding, as well as to help provide the skilled workforce Caterpillar and other modern industries need. For more information, contact Lee County Schools Career Development coordinators Brooke Rice, at Southern Lee High School, brice.ls@lee.k12.nc.us, or Alison Poole at Lee County High School, apoole.ls@lee.k12.nc.us.

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Members of the first class of the Caterpillar Youth Apprentice Program in welding take a break outside Caterpillar Inc.’s Sanford Fabrication Facility during their summer employment, part of the apprentice training program. The Lee County Schools students are now continuing their welding training at the plant and through Central Carolina Community College at the Lee County Innovation Center while finishing their senior year of high school. Pictured, not in order, are Josef Piper, Allen Gautier, James Kirik, and Briana Peterman, all of Lee County High School; and George Afaro, Steven Bouldin, Biagio Esposito, James Hilliard, Antonio Murchison, Ashley Stack, Andrew Stamper, and Anthony Woodlief, all of Southern Lee High School. The two-year program is a collaboration among Caterpillar, CCCC, Lee County Schools, and the N.C. Department of Labor. The NCDOL recognizes it as a registered youth apprentice, the second largest in the state. The goal of the program is to train high school students for critical, high-demand, well-paying careers in welding, as well as to help provide the skilled workforce Caterpillar and other modern industries need. For more information, contact Lee County Schools Career Development coordinators Brooke Rice, at Southern Lee High School, brice.ls@lee.k12.nc.us, or Alison Poole at Lee County High School, apoole.ls@lee.k12.nc.us.