Trade‑school Renaissance

Young Americans are increasingly choosing vocational training (machining, plumbing, welding) over four‑year degrees because those skills are seen as resilient to AI automation and tied to rising demand in energy, materials and defense production. The shift is visible in student confidence at trade schools (example: Newark, Ohio) and in investment flows favoring industrial and energy firms in 2026. — If sustained, this turn toward practical skills will reshape education policy, labor markets, regional development and the political coalition around workforce and industrial policy.