High school juniors in Wake County are about to get a paid, fast track into the trades, courtesy of a big check from Michael Bloomberg.
Wake Tech Community College and Wake County Public Schools have rolled out the WakeWorks Youth Apprenticeship Academy, a new partnership that will let students earn tuition-free college credits, pick up industry credentials and collect a paycheck before they even graduate. Bloomberg Philanthropies is backing the effort with a $4 million grant, and leaders say the academy will start with about 60 juniors in January 2027 and serve roughly 250 students over three years.
The goal is straightforward: give teenagers a clear, paid pathway into high-demand careers like electrical work, HVAC, plumbing and other skilled trades while helping local employers plug chronic staffing gaps.
Why Wake County Needs It
Wake County is growing, houses are going up, and the construction industry is hungry for workers. The state expects that need to keep climbing. North Carolina's construction sector is projected to add nearly 12,800 jobs by 2034, according to the North Carolina Department of Commerce, which puts extra pressure on local training pipelines.
Backers of the new academy say it is meant to steer students into stable, middle-class careers that do not require a four-year degree, while also shortening time-to-hire for businesses that cannot wait months or years to fill open roles. By expanding the youth apprenticeship pipeline, supporters argue, students get paid, credentialed options during and after high school, and employers get a more reliable flow of talent.
How The Academy Will Work
Students will come in as juniors as pre-apprentices through the Career & College Promise program, taking tuition-free Wake Tech courses and receiving participation stipends. In their senior year, they will move into a Registered Youth Apprenticeship, where they continue college coursework and earn wages while working with employers, according to Wake Tech.
The academy will offer pathways in construction and skilled trades, transportation technology and advanced manufacturing. Coursework will align with industry-recognized credentials such as NCCER, ASE and FANUC, so students leave with qualifications employers already know and trust. Recruitment and applications are scheduled to open in Fall 2026.
Funding, Scale And Timeline
In a press release from Wake Tech, Bloomberg Philanthropies committed $4 million to cover student stipends, books, tools, employer wage subsidies, additional instructors and outreach staff for the WakeWorks Youth Apprenticeship Academy.
Wake Tech says the academy will serve about 250 students over three years and launch its first cohort of roughly 60 students in January 2027. "Millions of good-paying jobs are going unfilled, and too many students never get a chance to learn the skills necessary to get them," Michael R. Bloomberg said in the announcement.
The release also notes that WakeWorks currently partners with 140 employers and has served nearly 550 apprentices this year, capacity the new academy is intended to extend into high schools.
Recruitment will begin this fall. Interested juniors are encouraged to connect with their high school career-development coordinator or CTE instructor for eligibility and application details. Program leaders say the academy builds on WakeWorks apprenticeship work launched in 2020 and is designed to make the trades a clearer, paid option for students who are weighing alternatives to a traditional four-year college track. Officials expect the academy to widen student opportunity and help local employers shore up staffing in the years ahead.
