Those in the elementary teaching profession take note — what you do makes a difference! For Alana Goodman, who is a second year in the IEC Pennsylvania Apprenticeship Program working with DeRock Electric, Carlisle, PA, it was her fourth-grade science teacher, Mrs. Sunday, who set her solidly on her way to her chosen electrical profession.
“Mrs. Sunday gave us a little project with a light bulb, a battery converter, and a couple wires,” Alana says. “Our task was to figure out how it worked. There were no instructions, and we were just thrown into it. I really loved it. I got it to turn on and so from there on, I just kind of knew that I wanted to be in the electrical field.”
Know Early; Fast Track Career
Knowing the direction she wanted to go with her career provided Alana the opportunity to line up all the pieces needed for to get her there. She researched electrical careers, and it impacted her high school choice. For Alana, that meant Boiling Springs High School in the afternoons and Cumberland Perry Area Career & Technical Center (CPACTC) in the electrical construction / maintenance program in the mornings.
All along the way, Alana looked for chances to improve her learning and get to her career more quickly. She stacked her high school schedule to get the requirements completed early to set herself up for more time at CPACTC. She fast-tracked her CPACTC schedule to begin full-time in the co-op portion of the coursework in her second vs. third year.
And, knowing she wanted to spend her career in a merit shop, she found a way to enter that arena while also doing the required International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) training at CPACTC. That led her to DeRock.
“I started at DeRock in the summer following my first year and again following my second year,” she recalls. “Since I finished the school requirements early, I then was able to work full-time at DeRock from then on.”
With her co-op status, overriding commitment to merit shop, and encouragement from DeRock, Alana added the IEC Pennsylvania Pre-Apprenticeship Program to her plate. She finished that program this past spring and has now begun — as a second-year student — in the IEC Pennsylvania Apprenticeship Program while continuing to work at DeRock.
“Completing the IEC Pennsylvania Pre-Apprenticeship Program online while at CPACTC meant I could begin the IEC Pennsylvania Apprenticeship Program this fall as a second-year student,” Alana reports. “I definitely loved getting to put the knowledge and all the skills that I was learning from pre-apprenticeship class to use when I would go out to work in the field with DeRock. It was always such a great feeling whenever I would go to a foreman, and they would be like, ‘hey, I don’t know if you know how to do this’ and I’d be, yes, actually, I do, because I already learned that in class.”
“Alana had come to us before even knowing about the IEC Pennsylvania Pre-Apprenticeship Program,” says Rock Forry, DeRock Electric. “She knew what she wanted. She had everything researched, had checked out the union way, and then she talked with us. She was very, very excited about what we had to offer. Doug (Detwiler) and I are very excited to see where she’s going to end up in our company as she grows and flourishes. She’s very driven; you give her a task and it means a lot to her to do it right. She likes to win.”
Alana is super appreciative of those in her life who have helped set her on a path to success. Of course, there is Mrs. Sunday and the eye-opening experiment, as well as Mr. Baney, her CPACTC instructor.
“DeRock owners Rock Forry and Doug Detwiler are always there for me,” she says. “They have always pushed me to work harder, and to always do the best that I can. At the end of the day, I could always come to them with any questions I had. They also attended my events like graduation from CPACTC.
“I have quite the big circle that surrounds me, which has definitely been a huge part in my success,” Alana continues. “My family, especially my parents Bridget and Scott Goodman, have always been such a big part of my life, supporting and encouraging me, and definitely pushing me to reach for the stars and achieve anything I want.”
Alana honors those who have helped her by continuing to do well. She plans to finish her IEC Pennsylvania Apprenticeship Program, learning more and gaining experience en route to taking her master’s. Also, she hopes to cap off the IEC Pennsylvania Apprenticeship Program with a win in the local wire-off her fourth year to earn a trip to IEC National to compete in the IEC Apprentice of the Year contest.
Advocating for Change
Alana was outspoken during her years at CPACTC about the need to include IEC training as an option to IBEW training. She had asked if she could do her second year with IEC vs. IBEW, but it was not allowed then.
Along with other students pursuing various avenues in vo-tech schools from surrounding Pennsylvania counties and IEC Pennsylvania staff, Alana participated in the Partnership for Career Development at the annual Career Ready Symposium at the CAIU (Capital Area Intermediate Unit) in the summer of 2025. As a graduate of vocational training, she was asked to share her experiences with the assembled audience of the school community.
“I got to talk a little bit about the IEC Pennsylvania Pre-Apprenticeship Program, and how I made that work with school, vo-tech, and then because I was also working,” she recalls. “They asked if there was something that I would change about the CPACTC program for the future. My response was that students should be offered the opportunity to have their in-class apprenticeship through IEC if they preferred that to IBEW.”
Way to be changemakers Alana and IEC Pennsylvania!