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From welding and construction to firefighting, hundreds of Hollister High School students interacted on Nov. 7 with the 25 different booths at the Central Coast Trades Show, learning about various trades and careers that are available to them after they graduate high school.
The students got an opportunity to ask questions to union and company representatives and test their skills with construction machinery and prototypes.
This year, the show was staged outside the school’s Career Technical Education (CTE) building.
For junior Ariel Hernandez, the show was an opportunity to gather more information about the trades, an option he is leaning toward at this point. He said he hasn’t ruled out going to college to pursue an engineering degree.
“I’m at a crossroads because part of me does want to go into the trades because I have a connection [to them through] my father who is in construction, landscaping,” he said. “But part of me also wants to go to college to do mechanical engineering.”
He said what stood out to him was learning about the benefits and pensions unions offer and how people can join apprenticeships straight out of high school.
Even though freshmen Janessa Amerosio and Audrina Mungia plan to attend a four-year college after high school, they said learning about the different trades was still interesting and fun. They took the opportunity, along with their friends, to get on a CalFire truck.
Both said they liked that PG&E offered a demonstration about how electricity runs through power lines.
Asked if the show gave her ideas as to what career she wanted to pursue, Mungia said “Yes and no, because it’s like all these options, it’s kind of a lot but it’s really cool how they show you what you can do and benefit from it.”
Five Anzar High School students also attended. Anzar Director of Curriculum and Instruction Jivan Dhaliwal said the two seniors and three juniors representing the school would be sharing what they learned with their peers.
Anzar senior Dominic Chesseo said the show reinforced his interest in welding after speaking with a representative from Universal Technical Institute about its training program.
“I’ve always wanted to do welding,” Chesso said. “I like welding and I’ve done welding before, but after talking to him that kind of solidified it.”
Hollister High School Director of Career and College Readiness Claire Grissom said the intent of the trades show is for students to see their options.
“It really is making sure our students have all of their options open upon graduation and that includes the building and construction trades,” she said. “So exposing them to the different opportunities that each of these companies and unions has for them.”
Grissom said between 800 and 1,200 students were expected to attend the show either on their own during lunch or with their class.
Ariel Hernandez said he was leaning toward joining an apprenticeship over going to college. Photo by Noe Magaña. 
Audrina Mungia (right) and Janessa Amerosio (third from right) said they were planning on going to a four-year college but found the trades show interesting. Photo by Noe Magaña. 
Audrina Mungia talks with a PG&E representative during Hollister High School’s fourth annual trades show. Photo by Noe Magaña.
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