Elizabeth Cardenas, an 18-year-old senior at Dubiski Career High School in Grand Prairie, is breaking barriers as a tech intern at HOLT CAT Irving. Alongside her classmates in the applied agricultural engineering pathway, Elizabeth spends three days a week gaining hands-on experience in the heavy equipment industry.
Despite the lucrative opportunities in heavy equipment careers, graduating high schoolers, especially women, rarely choose this path. HOLT CAT, a prominent player in the industry, is on a mission to change that narrative.
Elizabeth’s day-to-day looks the same as a full-time technician, repairing and maintaining engines and other machines, but with a mentor nearby. She hopes once she graduates in May, she will be hired full time to make repairs in the hydraulics shop.
“I like hydraulics because the stakes are high. When putting something back together again, each piece is critical. One mistake could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage to the machine. I like working under that kind of pressure,” she said.
Elizabeth has been interested in repairing machines since she was 9 years old, she says. Her father runs a small tow truck business and passed down a love for tinkering.
Robbie Tedder, service manager at HOLT CAT and Elizabeth’s supervisor, remembers when he was in her shoes, 46 years ago. “I started at HOLT CAT the day after I graduated from Nimitz High School and have been here since.”
Elizabeth enjoyed her internship so much that she encouraged two female friends from school to apply, contributing to a push for greater gender diversity in the heavy equipment industry.
In addition to earning up to $12.50 per hour during high school, interns like Elizabeth graduate with essential skills required for entry-level technician roles. Most importantly, they often receive job offers from HOLT CAT, addressing the industry's critical need for skilled professionals.
The diesel tech industry is facing a major need to attract over 177,000 new professionals across the country within the next five years. This is crucial to meet increasing demand and replace the wave of retiring technicians. However, only 10,699 students successfully completed postsecondary training programs in diesel technology in 2021. HOLT CAT’s unique internship program has created a pipeline for technicians to solve this problem that can serve as a model for other trade employers.
