WECA Arizona Commercial Electrical Apprenticeship graduate Cody Cole, who works for WECA Arizona Member Contractor Corbins, recently spoke to Business Insider about his success in the WECA Arizona Commercial Electrical Apprenticeship Program and in his career with Corbins, and spotlighted the opportunities both endeavors (and the current AI boom) have created for him.

"I started in the electrical field in 2019 at 18 years old...now, seven years later, I'm a superintendent making over $40 an hour with 45 people who report to me. It's helped relieve the financial stress my wife and I have from everyday life, as we raise three kids and give them the best upbringing we can," Cody shared.

"With a career in industrial electrical work, I knew I was able to start making good money right out of high school...the AI boom also changed my perspective on my career in electrical. I've seen firsthand that there's going to continue to be a need for skilled tradesmen; at my company, Corbins, we specialize in data centers, which are going to be needed with the expansion of AI," Cody continued.

"There's a lot of job security in what we do. With the expansion of AI going at an extreme rate, there's plenty of work all over the country with these jobs. The opportunities are endless."

Read the rest of Cody's Business Insider spotlight here. To read the whole article, you may need to start a free trial or switch to reader mode in your browser.

Thinking of starting your electrical journey this September?

WECA's GetWired Electrician Trainee Program offers Electrician Trainees the ultimate flexibility in their educational journeys with three different ways to complete the program -- online instructor-led with your choice of online or onsite labs, or entirely online self-paced!

Mix and match all of the approaches to design a personalized Electrician Trainee Program Certificate journey that works for you.


 

Start planning your Electrician Trainee Program Certificate journey here!

Ready to get started? Learn more about the program here.

WECA Apprentices:

Take Advantage of SmartDollar, Your FREE Apprenticeship Benefit

$1,000 Money Challenge

Not Yet Taking Advantage of SmartDollar? Get Started Below



 

Content courtesy of SmartDollar

Much like January, September is a season for fresh starts and renewed goals.

With the $1,000 Savings Challenge, you can find extra money to put toward debt or build your savings.

---------------

Not yet signed up for SmartDollar? No worries -- getting started is easy! Learn how below.

SmartDollar is a financial wellness benefit for WECA apprentices. We announced our partnership with the Dave Ramsey-founded online financial wellness platform in January, 2021 to provide our apprentices with a sound foundation in personal finance management. This benefit is available to all WECA apprentices free of charge. Not yet signed up for SmartDollar? No worries -- scroll to the bottom of this article for instructions!

What is SmartDollar? SmartDollar is a step-by-step approach to handling money with the number-one authority in personal finance, Dave Ramsey. More than 4.5 million people have started on Dave's plan and taken control of their money, and you can too! SmartDollar will equip you to get out of debt, on a budget, and on your way to a strong financial foundation.

The average person pays off $9,405 of debt and saves $6,127 in the first twelve months, and you can too!

"This program is powerful yet simple to understand. The Baby Steps make understanding how to win with money easy! Dave's lessons are fun, informative, and incredibly encouraging. It really doesn't feel like I'm taking a financial course. It's more like learning finances from a good friend...or a financially savvy stand-up comedian! The online tools are fantastic as well, and I love being able to 'ASK DAVE' any question and do my budget online. Love it all!" - Recent participant

With SmartDollar, you'll learn how to...

• Jump-start your money
• Knock out debt
• Secure your dream home
• Retire in style
• Demystify your credit score

How does SmartDollar work? With so many ways to engage in SmartDollar activities and content, SmartDollar Points have been designed to encourage users to establish true behavior change. (Check out the graph below for a quick rundown). The greater the importance and required time of each activity, the greater the amount of points that can be earned. For example, each Core Lesson video completed is worth 250 points. Completing a shorter Deep Dive video is worth 50 points. Tracking a transaction in EveryDollar is only worth 20 points, but users are encouraged to track all their financial transactions with no points limitations. These example activities are key for building the confidence you need to reach your financial goals.






 

Taking advantage of your free financial wellness benefit, SmartDollar, is easy!

To set up your account after accessing your dashboard, click either of the links shown as highlighted in the screenshot to the right of this paragraph. You'll be taken to a page with a SmartDollar enrollment link, where you will be able to set up immediate access to this important benefit.

Ready to get started?

Login to your GOWECA dashboard

Congratulations to the 2026 Frank Vellutini Apprenticeship Scholarship Award winners, and thank you to everyone who applied for consideration!

• Cole Bolton
• Amanda Garcia
• Daniel Schultz
• Morgan Granados
• Joshua Sallee
• Aaron Bryk
• Nicholas Jordan
• Bryan Kostal
• Ryan Hamblin
• Victor Aguilar
• John Rodriguez
• Wendy Felix
• Victor Aguilar
• DeWayne Brooks
• Florin Vizauer
• Isaac Gutierrez
• Roman Renteria
• Christopher Cruz
• Alvaro Zamora
• Brandon McKane
• Jose Lopez
• Ernesto Hernandez
• Lorenzo Landin
• Carlos Vidaca
• Zachary Marshall
• Brandon Johnson

Electrician Trainees and Continuing Education students: Starting or continuing your Electrician Trainee Program or Continuing Education journeys this fall is just a click away! Instructor-led GetWired classes starting September-December are now available for online enrollment. (And of course, self-paced classes are available anytime!)

Enroll in WECA's Fall 2026 (Oct-Dec) GetWired courses here!

Curriculum on Tour! These fun snaps are from recent visits that Maris Kaplan, Curriculum Development Manager, and Alyssa Bradley, Education Technology Specialist, made to WECA's San Diego, Riverside, and Fresno Training Facilities. Maris and Alyssa visited these facilities to work closely with the WECA instructors there to understand the unique needs and opportunities for curriculum at each location, and to prioritize in-person collaboration to create a culture of mutual support and innovation.

In San Diego, they met new Low Voltage Apprenticeship instructor Alex Cortez and visited with instructors Don Williams and Sebastian Caparelli; saw the near-complete mock data room, which features a projector wall for seamless lesson integration, and the team's progress on a large lab facility and inventory reorganization project. In Riverside, they met with new Commercial Electrical Apprenticeship instructor Luis Ibarra and learned about future classroom and lab buildout ideas proposed for the new facility. And finally, in Fresno, they hand-delivered the printed new edition of WECA's instructor guides, did some curriculum onboarding with new Apprenticeship instructor Robin Conger, received a facility tour from Commercial Electrical Apprenticeship instructor George Leach, and did some testing for new VR and web-based training scenarios.

WECA Apprentices:

?Take Advantage of SmartDollar, Your FREE Apprenticeship Benefit

Getting By Isn't Getting You Ahead: a SmartDollar Success Story

?Not Yet Taking Advantage of SmartDollar? Get Started Below

Content courtesy of SmartDollar

If you've been feeling like you can't get ahead with your money, we want you to see what's possible.

Watch how this family of five paid off $154,000 in less than two years.

No shortcuts. Just a plan that works.

Watch their story.

This is the kind of progress that's possible when you use your SmartDollar benefit.

------------------------

Not yet signed up for SmartDollar? No worries -- getting started is easy! Learn how below.

SmartDollar is a financial wellness benefit for WECA apprentices. We announced our partnership with the Dave Ramsey-founded online financial wellness platform in January, 2021 to provide our apprentices with a sound foundation in personal finance management. This benefit is available to all WECA apprentices free of charge. Not yet signed up for SmartDollar? No worries -- scroll to the bottom of this article for instructions!

What is SmartDollar? SmartDollar is a step-by-step approach to handling money with the number-one authority in personal finance, Dave Ramsey. More than 4.5 million people have started on Dave's plan and taken control of their money, and you can too! SmartDollar will equip you to get out of debt, on a budget, and on your way to a strong financial foundation.

The average person pays off $9,405 of debt and saves $6,127 in the first twelve months, and you can too!

"This program is powerful yet simple to understand. The Baby Steps make understanding how to win with money easy! Dave's lessons are fun, informative, and incredibly encouraging. It really doesn't feel like I'm taking a financial course. It's more like learning finances from a good friend...or a financially savvy stand-up comedian! The online tools are fantastic as well, and I love being able to 'ASK DAVE' any question and do my budget online. Love it all!" - Recent participant

With SmartDollar, you'll learn how to...

• Jump-start your money
• Knock out debt
• Secure your dream home
• Retire in style
• Demystify your credit score

How does SmartDollar work? With so many ways to engage in SmartDollar activities and content, SmartDollar Points have been designed to encourage users to establish true behavior change. (Check out the graph below for a quick rundown). The greater the importance and required time of each activity, the greater the amount of points that can be earned. For example, each Core Lesson video completed is worth 250 points. Completing a shorter Deep Dive video is worth 50 points. Tracking a transaction in EveryDollar is only worth 20 points, but users are encouraged to track all their financial transactions with no points limitations. These example activities are key for building the confidence you need to reach your financial goals.





 

Taking advantage of your free financial wellness benefit, SmartDollar, is easy!

To set up your account after accessing your dashboard, click either of the links shown as highlighted in the screenshot to the right of this paragraph. You'll be taken to a page with a SmartDollar enrollment link, where you will be able to set up immediate access to this important benefit.

Ready to get started?

?Login to your GOWECA dashboard