Meet Jemal Shabazz
STAR Graduate in Fiber Optics
Jemal’s grandfather’s electrician tools and theory of electricity books caught Jemal’s attention at an early age. Jemal started out with ambitions to be an electrician journeyman, but ultimately he wanted to build a career in fiber, something he calls “career certainty” rather than “job security.” “I was looking at the job landscape and doing all this research on the tech industry. I figured, let's try to find something that can work with automation and AI instead of getting fully replaced by it.”
This led him to Google’s Skilled Trades and Readiness (STAR) Program in Omaha, where Jemal enrolled in a multi-week program in fiber optics. The intense and fast-paced curriculum provided him with the skills and the confidence to enter the field despite having little prior fiber experience.
In his current job, he is being given more advanced tasks because of his strong work ethic and the training he received in the STAR program. He knows these types of programs are vital for giving community members the opportunities they need to pursue a fiber optics or construction career. And he wants to help other young black men have more of the same opportunities he has had in the fiber field, someday becoming a fiber instructor and teaching and influencing young people in underinvested communities to follow a career in the trades.
This led him to Google’s Skilled Trades and Readiness (STAR) Program in Omaha, where Jemal enrolled in a multi-week program in fiber optics. The intense and fast-paced curriculum provided him with the skills and the confidence to enter the field despite having little prior fiber experience.
In his current job, he is being given more advanced tasks because of his strong work ethic and the training he received in the STAR program. He knows these types of programs are vital for giving community members the opportunities they need to pursue a fiber optics or construction career. And he wants to help other young black men have more of the same opportunities he has had in the fiber field, someday becoming a fiber instructor and teaching and influencing young people in underinvested communities to follow a career in the trades.
Having those certifications from the STAR Program allows my job to put me on more advanced tasks. And they’re confident with my work ability and work ethic and all that, just in addition to the credentials.
The STAR Program also gave me the confidence to enter a high-level field like this with just a little experience. I felt informed enough to start my job with confidence and not feel like a complete novice when I first got out into the field.
— JEMAL SHABAZZ
