As someone who built her own house with her husband in Skamania County, Washington, Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez, congresswoman for Washington’s third district and co-owner of Dean’s Car Care in Portland, serves as a front woman for trade schools in the federal fight for more funding and awareness.
“There is a real cultural shift that I think needs to take place to really get us back to a point where we respect and honor work [hard labor],” she says as one of co-leads on the federal REPAIR Act. “I think that we have to reflect those values in the legislation that we’re passing.”
Her set list includes working to make Pell Grants more accessible for trade school students. She’s also endorsed legislation that would add information about the trades as viable career choice on a student’s FAFSA application. In addition, she introduced a bill that would help graduates from vocational programs start their own small businesses, just like her and her husband have done.
“We really need to start putting our money where our mouth is,” she says. “If we believe academia and trade schools are equally valuable, we need match our investment in academics with our investment in the trades.”
She highlighted a study in the state of Washington that found that every $1 that is spent on career and technical education in K-12 is reflected in a $9 payout in value to taxpayers.
“It really is one of the best investments you can make,” she says matter-of-factly.
Aside from the returns trade schools give to a local economy, Marie believes that they can provide a much-needed outlet for young people who may not be as successful as their peers in a traditional academic environment.
“Right now, our young men are dying in incredible numbers from suicide. I think that a big part of that is that we have, for decades now, told people if you’re not book smart, you’re not smart and denigrated all the other forms of intelligence out there,” she says. “For the short-term health of the enthusiast and gearheads, you really need a 14-year-old taking apart a lawnmower if you want to have a technician in their twenties. That’s the lifecycle of a mechanic.”
