Rowe: time to teach more skilled trades

Rowe, who rose to fame through his show “Dirty Jobs” which highlights underappreciate­d careers that are also essential to keeping the lights on and food on the table, is a proponent of offering students alternative paths to gainful employment.

“Pre-pandemic, there were about 7 million open positions that didn’t require a four-year degree,” Rowe said. “We’re starting to realize in our zeal to make a more persuasive case for higher education, we created a [disincentive] around alternative education, two-year degrees, community college, apprenticeships and trade schools. Those things fell out of favor.”

In addition to his TV career, Rowe also oversees a foundation which annually awards scholarships to students seeking a degree or certification through one of these alternative routes. 

Rowe’s belief in the value of learning a trade began well before his TV career, back to his life growing up on a small farm near Baltimore. There, he watched and worked with his grandfather, who Rowe called a generalist who could do almost anything.

“He was an electrician by trade, but also a plumber. He just had the touch. He possessed so many broad-based skills,” he said. “I realize now that just like my granddad, farmers are magicians, they can pivot so fast. And, they’re generalists … I’m still enamored of the renaissance worker and the generalist who can do a lot of things really well.

“If you really wanted to profile a generalist, somebody who can lay pipe, run electric, build a digester, turn the poop into something that heats their house, so forth and so on, just talk to a farmer.”

He contends today’s higher education style doesn’t offer a wide enough variety of experiences and career opportunities.