DETROIT (WXYZ) — Detroit high schoolers pledged their futures to careers in automotive, welding, design and other skilled trades at a ceremony on Wednesday.
The Detroit Public Schools Community District Foundation, Ford Philanthropy and the national organization SkillsUSA held the first-ever Detroit Signing Day, a celebration of high school students who plan to work in fields ranging from automotive to design.
Watch Demetrios Sanders' video report below:
Da'Juan Groves, a high school senior, said his grandmother inspired his path into the trades.
"She always did welding and she also did auto collision like I'm doing, so I always wanted to do it," Groves said.
Groves began taking classes at Breithaupt Career and Technical Center during his junior year, learning how to repair damaged vehicles.
"It taught me just by surveying, you can tell where a scratch is at on the car, a dent and how to get it out in a good four minutes without all the extra tools," Groves said.
He now dreams of using his skills to help others.
"A lot of people can't afford to fix their cars up professionally, so they have to end up taking the bus. I want to be able to help those people get their cars fixed without any issues," Groves said.
Groves is one of dozens of students who took part in the event. As each student signed their name, it signified a pledge to a career in skilled trades.
Alex Shelton, Ford Philanthropy's education manager, said the day was about more than a ceremony.
"It's an amazing way just to celebrate students and give them dignity and pride in the work they chose," Shelton said.
Kerrie Mitchell Campbell-Mabins, president of the Detroit Public Schools Community District Foundation, said Breithaupt offers students a range of pathways.
"At Breithaupt, they have about four different industries that they can go into from welding to auto technician to graphic and design. So this was their day to commit to finishing out what they've already been doing inside of the classroom," Mitchell Campbell-Mabins said.
Educators say getting young people into these industries is critical. According to the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, professional trades jobs are expected to reach 47,000 annual openings by the end of 2028. The department also notes that careers in professional trades pay 30% higher than the statewide median of all occupations.
"Our primary goal for our students is to make sure our students leave here with a credential," said Felicia Moore, principal at Breithaupt Career and Technical Center. "So that way those students have that credential and it makes it easier for them to leave high school and go directly into the workplace."
Student Dallis Sutton said the skills learned at Breithaupt extend beyond any single career.
"We learned the different pliers and different wrenches, and you can use that in other things that needs that type of that work," Sutton said.
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