By Daniel Wright

Scroll through TikTok or Instagram and you’ll see it — the trades are trending, with young carpenters racking up video views and proving hard work and good pay still turn heads. They’re changing minds about careers and, yes, making the trades cool again.

The question is: Can the rest of us keep up?

We need to explain the benefits of a career in the trades much earlier — in more middle schools and high schools. We need to introduce kids to the basics and get tools in their hands. And we must convince students that a career in the trades is not a fallback. It’s a first choice — and often the best choice — for millions of young adults across the country.

When we accomplish this, young adults can finally escape the college-or-bust path that too often ends without a degree

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