Skilled Trades and Readiness
For more details about our Nebraska STAR program, email us at Star.WorkforceNE@gmail.com.
Working with professionals to reach their highest potential
As technology and AI evolve, we are ensuring communities grow alongside it, equipping them with the knowledge and skills they need for jobs in the digital economy.
We are building a skilled and diverse workforce for the future
Mike swaps out a motherboard at our data center in The Dalles, Oregon. When server parts break, we first try to repair them. If we can't, we break them up into raw materials (steel, plastic, copper, etc.) and recycle the components.
Workforce Development Programs
Skilled trades are essential for keeping the digital economy running smoothly today — and into the future. It’s why Google commits to building skills and knowledge in our data center communities. We begin with initiatives like our Skilled Trades and Readiness (STAR) Program, which prepares local talent for a trades or construction career in their region.
Providing new opportunities, investing in talent
The Skilled Trades and Readiness (STAR) Program prepares new-to-industry talent for entry-level careers in construction and skilled trades, helping to support a robust workforce in the data center communities we call home.
2024 South Carolina STAR graduates in Construction.
Get to know the people who are training with Google to build up their communities
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Jemal Shabazz
Nebraska, USASTAR Graduate in Fiber Optics
Jemal Shabazz believes in fiber.
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.
“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, 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 ShabazzSTAR Graduate in Fiber Optics
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Aurora Rodriguez
Northern Virginia, USASTAR Graduate in Construction
Aurora Rodriguez has already built the foundation for a strong career. She credits her mom for giving her the strength and the gumption to begin pursuing her goals and dreams early. Her mom came to the United States from Honduras right after 9/11, and has worked the same job for the same salary since she began, working days and nights and taking the bus everywhere. This inspired Aurora to aim higher. She finished high school online so she could start working full time her sophomore year. “Everything I do is so she can have a better life and retirement.”
Aurora always knew she wanted to work in the trades and began in welding. However, it became financially challenging to continue that work. She moved into logistical roles, yet a career in the trades still called to Aurora.
That’s when she heard about Google’s Skilled Trades and Readiness (STAR) Program in Construction at Northern Virginia Community College. She completed the program in 2024, which has led to more project management opportunities at her job and a desire to go back to school and earn a four-year degree. Aurora’s mom is surely beaming with pride. “I remember the tough times, that no matter what, my mom made sure I pushed through.”
“I came from a logistical background from Amazon to UPS Stores. I was trying to prepare going back to school...and then I came upon the STAR Program.”
“The STAR Program is making a difference in communities. It is giving opportunities to people who probably felt stuck just like I did.”
Aurora RodriguezSTAR Graduate in Construction
Skilled Trades and Readiness
For more details about our Virginia STAR program, email us at Star.WorkforceVA@gmail.com
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Expanding educational opportunities
A certified Google educator works one-on-one with a child to increase his computer science and analytical thinking skills. The Google for Education Champions program recognizes educators for their expertise, passion, and system-wide work using Google tools to positively impact education.
Prioritizing digital literacy and STEM programs
Education is a fundamental right — and core to Google’s mission. In every data center community, our resources, skills, and people provide educational opportunities for everyone.
We invest in programs to teach digital skills that help all people, regardless of their technical backgrounds, prepare for the opportunities tied to the era of AI.
Coming together to bolster resilient communities
Support networks help our neighbors now and into the future
Google is committed to supporting communities recovering from life-changing challenges and building community resilience for the future. From disaster relief and disability resources to homelessness and food insecurity solutions, we’re investing in support of community programs and advocacy to spark change.
We are progressing our work alongside our growing cohort of critical collaborators — from schools to nonprofits to hospitals — who are addressing key local issues in all of our data center communities. Through cooperation and joint efforts, we work hand-in-hand with community leaders to address their greatest challenges. Together, we can advance every community’s ability to be prepared, to respond, and to use our resources to come back stronger from formidable situations.
Brian Barks, CEO of Foodbank for the Heartland in Nebraska, looks out from the distribution center. The foodbank ships food to families in need. Google has invested in this vital organization that serves our Iowa and Nebraska communities.
Measuring our global investment
These women are from the “Leading Ladies” Global Inheritance program in Northern Virginia. The program has placed interns at Google and other top-tier companies.
