Recent years have seen a growing interest in the value and appeal of the skilled trades as a viable career option for young people. Driven largely by a climate of economic opportunity (and crisis) and a growing suspicion, if not distrust, of many institutions of higher learning, this renewed emphasis on the dignity of the skilled trades is a sign of great hope. However, in considering the value of the skilled trades, there may be more to be gained than simply highlighting pathways for economic mobility and stability. It may be possible that the skilled trades open the door to discovering a deeper meaning to work itself, the role of work in forming the human person in freedom and creativity, and the power of work as, to quote St. John Paul II, "perhaps the essential key to the social problem." This talk will examine these themes through the lens of lessons learned from the first five years of operation of Harmel Academy of the Trades, a community of prayer, work, and study in Grand Rapids, MI.
President
David Michael Phelps is the President of Harmel Academy of the Trades. He joined Harmel after a twenty-year career in education and media production.
David also served as President of the Board during the refounding of Sacred Heart Academy in Grand Rapids, MI, and as Director of Development and Artist-in-Residence during the refounding of Compass Film Academy. He earned his Master’s degree in English Language and Literature from Central Michigan University and studied English and Latin at Hope College.
Mr. Phelps has several years’ experience as a creative director, brand strategist, film producer and writer, developing a number of marketing campaigns for national and international brands, as well as films and documentaries including, For the Life of the World: Letters to the Exiles and Desire of the Everlasting Hills.
David currently serves on the Board of Sacred Heart Academy and the Board of Directors for the Grand Rapids Griffins Youth Foundation, where he has coached youth hockey for fifteen years. Until his appointment at Harmel, he also served on Harmel’s Founding Advisory Board.
David and his wife Cheri have four children and are parishioners at Sacred Heart of Jesus in Grand Rapids, MI.
