Cat Footwear is putting the spotlight on five students from Caterpillar Inc.’s ThinkBig program.
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Footwear News may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
Cat Footwear, a division of Wolverine Worldwide and official footwear licensee of Caterpillar, is bringing back its “Back to Construction School” program for 2024.
According to the work shoe brand, this is the second year of its partnership with Caterpillar Inc.’s ThinkBig program, where together they celebrate and support students pursuing careers in the trades.
As part of the program, Cat Footwear is putting the spotlight on five students from the ThinkBig program. These students include Aurelio Resa, who will be beginning the program this fall; Cale Mouser, SkillsUSA national diesel engine competition winner; Justan Beach, a recent graduate from the ThinkBig program in May with a 4.0 GPA; Brianna Fizer, a second year student in the program; and Noah Aweau, also a second year student in the ThinkBig program.
Cat Footwear said in a statement that these students were chosen because they have “demonstrated excellence in their field,” and will have their stories amplified on a national scale via the brand’s social channels with the goal of “providing real-life stories and visuals to other students debating careers in a trade field.”
“With a shortage of students opting for careers in construction, our partnership with Caterpillar Inc.’s ThinkBig program is essential to our team’s mission of helping bridge this gap,” Dit Vannouvong, senior director of marketing at Cat Footwear, said in a statement. “Through this program our teams are proud to uplift, inspire, and educate the next generation of students pursuing careers in skilled trades.”
Later this month, the brand will be hosting a signing day event with national retailer WSS on August 13 at the ThinkBig student orientation to celebrate and honor the first-year students at San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton, Calif. This event will celebrate local students from Holt, Quinn Peterson and Hawthorne Cat Dealerships who have chosen to pursue careers in the skilled trades.
Plus, during the month of August, Cat Footwear will be donating 5 percent of sales from every Colorado Equip sale on Catfootwear.com to the ThinkBig Caterpillar Technician Academy to further support students entering the trades.
ThinkBig is a two-year instructional program that pays students while they train to become a Caterpillar technician. Participants alternate between labs and classroom work and intern at a sponsoring Cat dealership. At the end of the program, students graduate with an accredited degree, as well as over 2,000 hours of work experience.
Workboot brands such as Cat Footwear, which specialize in on-the-job gear, have been increasingly using their platforms to raise awareness about career opportunities in skilled trades. Wolverine Worldwide’s namesake brand has notably been one of these brands encouraging young people to get involved in skilled trades.
