SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine — First lady Dr. Jill Biden got to take a look at what students at Southern Maine Community College are learning and even gave it a try.
Dr. Biden didn't speak to the media on Wednesday, but the students she met said they were excited to show her their school and the importance of being in the trades.
"Unlike every other profession that is taught at a standard high school, those won't run without a trade," SMCC student Patrick Sheehan said.
The first lady was joined by Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree, Commissioner Heather Johnson, Mayor Kate Snyder, and SMCC leaders.
The school's president, Joe Cassidy, touted the ability that Maine students can attend school for free and get good-paying jobs as soon as they graduate.
"They can, you know, live the American dream — they can live here in Maine, they can buy a home, they can support their children, etc," he said. "This investment that the state of Maine has made has been instrumental. It's really caught the attention of young people, of their families it's made them realize that the state is saying we need you in the state of Maine we need you to be successful here."
Congresswoman Pingree added that she is happy to have the opportunity to show off her home state.
"All we ever hear from employers is 'please give us more trained employees,' so this was a way to show the first lady that this is exactly what you need to do to make college affordable, in this case free, and make the trades available to people," she said.
From SMCC the first lady went to Burlington, Vermont to visit an aerospace company to learn about what they're doing there with workforce development.