Each summer, Brown staff step into the skilled trades, and toward new career possibilities

For some, that exposure becomes a starting point for continued training.

Providence native Manny DaRosa joined Brown as a custodian in 1988 and spent two summers training in the carpenter shop before moving into a full-time equipment mechanic position. He continued building skills, advancing to carpenter before later training to become a master locksmith, the role he holds today.

"The summer training program helped me get into the trades," DaRosa said. "If you have skills, you can showcase those skills. If you don't have those skills but you're willing to learn, somebody is willing to show you, you can develop those skills and move up."

A path to professional licensure

While the program can provide a foothold in the skilled trades, it is not a licensing program. For employees seeking licensure, Facilities Management also leads a formal apprenticeship program, registered with the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training, that over the past three years has provided 10 employees with the training and experience required for careers in electrical, plumbing, pipefitting and HVAC.

Unlike summer training, apprentices work year-round as permanent equipment mechanics. They spend roughly three years completing supervised field work under licensed Brown tradespeople while taking required classroom courses, with Facilities Management reimbursing the cost. Once they complete the required coursework and field hours, apprentices can qualify for the state licensing exam, and, if they pass, become licensed professionals in their trade.

It's a path Jamie Angell began in 2016.

Eight years into her work as a custodian at Brown, Angell was ready for a new challenge. When an entry-level equipment mechanic position opened in HVAC, she saw a chance to transition into the trades, build technical skills and pursue greater career advancement. Once she secured the position, Angell entered Brown's apprenticeship program, learning on the job from experienced HVAC mechanics while taking night classes at the Rhode Island Construction Training Academy in Pawtucket.

After three years of field and classroom training, Angell passed the state licensing exam and became a licensed HVAC mechanic, a role she has held at Brown for six years. The apprenticeship, she said, changed the course of her career.

"I knew this program would help me build a better future," she said. "It gives people a platform to know they can achieve any educational or technical goal. Outside of Brown, breaking into the trades can be a difficult road, but Brown makes the process clear and accessible. That builds real confidence within yourself."

Within Facilities, there's a standing joke that Senior Director of Custodial Services Donna Butler knows quite literally every person among the department's nearly 330 frontline staff. After more than 25 years at Brown, she has watched dozens of employees move from custodial work into trades positions through the summer training and apprenticeship programs - a pipeline she actively supports.

"Jobs in custodial are really a foot in the door - a way into Brown," Butler said. "If people love to clean, they stay. We have staff with 42 or 43 years of service in custodial. But for others, it can be a springboard to new opportunities."

For Butler, seeing employees move from custodial work into technical roles isn't viewed as losing a team member, but as a shared success: "I tell them all: when the time comes, go for it," Butler said. "When we lose someone to advancement in the trades, we applaud it."