Page 16 - Georgia Forestry - Issue 2 - Spring 2024

opportunities than any generation ever before them. It’s just insane, the amount of opportunities, apprenticeship pro- grams, school programs. The workforce people are begging you to come in and do a good job.”
Changing the Narrative on Professional Success
Part of the headwind is a problem that many people in the industry did little to create but now must mitigate.
“The last 20-30 years, people said, ‘If you don’t do a four-year college, you’re a failure.’ That’s been the message coming out of our education system and from [many] parents,” Cooksey said. “We need a lot of four-year degrees, don’t get me wrong. But that’s not every job in this country; there’s definitely a whole lot more jobs that don’t require that four- year degree than that do require that degree. I always tell folks, ‘If you want a four-year degree, and you have clarity
Students observe a prescribed burn at Walton WMA Dove Field.
on what you’re trying to do, then go for it. But there’s nothing wrong with going to work as an 18-year-old and figuring out what the world’s got to offer, figuring out maybe a little bit more about what’s available. And then go back and get your degree, whether that’s a technical college
degree or a four-year degree.”
Another important facet of workforce
development is expanding the pool of workers to include veterans and “second chance” populations — people who previously struggled, including with arrests or incarcerations or simply
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