One STEP at a Time: New Long Beach Program Creates Direct Path From High School to IBEW 11 Career

One STEP at a Time: New Long Beach Program Creates Direct Path From
High School to IBEW 11 Career

When IBEW Local 11 Executive Board Member John Harriel Jr. talks about the Seniors to
Electrical Program (STEP) launching in Long Beach this September, he is already thinking far
beyond its first class of high school seniors. He is thinking 50 years ahead.
STEP is a first-of-its-kind partnership between IBEW 11, the National Electrical Contractors
Association (NECA), the Electrical Training Institute (ETI), the Port of Long Beach, and Long
Beach schools. Harriel hopes it becomes a model for introducing generations of high school
students to the electrical trades and strengthening the pipeline into union electrical careers.
The program will initially serve about 25 seniors from three Long Beach high schools. Students
will attend high school during the day while completing first-year electrical apprenticeship
curriculum after school. Those who successfully complete the program, meet its requirements,
and graduate from high school will have a direct-entry pathway into IBEW 11’s apprenticeship
program.
Where the Idea Started

The idea behind STEP took shape decades ago while Harriel was incarcerated. Harriel grew up
around gang activity, dropped out of high school, and went to prison. While incarcerated, he
began educating himself. As his reading improved, so did his understanding of himself, his
community, and the kind of life he wanted to build. A fellow incarcerated man named Ernest
Cornes became a mentor to him.
“One day we were talking, and he said, ‘Hey, young fella, you know that a journey of a thousand
miles starts with one step,’” Harriel recalled. “I kept that in my head.”
That lesson stayed with Harriel as he rebuilt his life and eventually began a career with IBEW
11, an opportunity he credits with changing his trajectory. Harriel built a successful career in the
electrical industry and became a union leader. Along the way, he began helping others enter the
trades, particularly people who might not otherwise know how to navigate the apprenticeship
process. His mentoring goes beyond career guidance. Harriel leads life skills sessions
addressing self-esteem, family challenges, workplace expectations, attitude, punctuality, and
accountability.
Harriel took the word “step” that his mentor had given him years earlier, turned it into a
memorable acronym, and began figuring out how to launch the program. Part of the inspiration
came from the Veterans Electrical Entry Program, which helps transitioning service members
begin apprentice-related training before leaving the military so they can move more directly into
electrical careers.
“If they can do it for the veterans, let me do it on the other end for young people,” Harriel
recalled thinking. “Why wait until after graduation for young people to discover the trades? Why
not allow motivated seniors to begin apprenticeship training while they were still in school?”
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