Montgomery County High School student signs with plumbing company

Montgomery County High School senior Jacob Bradley is already getting started in his career

MT. STERLING, Ky. (WTVQ) – You’ve heard of high school student-athletes signing to play for college teams, but have you heard of a high school student signing with a company to start his career?

That’s exactly what Montgomery County High School senior Jacob Bradley did Wednesday, officially signing with Fast Flow Plumbing as a plumbing apprentice.

Bradley is part of a unique co-op program at Montgomery County High School, which allowed him to work with Fast Flow while finishing school as an apprentice to a Master Plumber, which he’ll continue to do for the next two years.

“We’re always trying to help our students be college or career ready,” said Montgomery County High School guidance counselor Lacey Gross, “some students are ready to go straight into their career field, and we want our students to be intentional about their plans after they graduate.”

According to Fast Flow Plumbing Vice President Ben Crum, plumbers are in high demand, with more than 80,000 plumbers leaving the field in the next ten years.

As an essential service, plumbers start as apprentices, making about $14 to $20 per hour, and can own and operate their own companies in just a few years.

Crum says Fast Flow Plumbing started recruiting students at Montgomery County High School in March, and says the company will continue the recruiting process into the fall.

“We know that growth for our company lies strictly with the youth that are graduating right now and we’re willing to invest in anyone that comes to us,” said Crum.

Bradley credits his dad with inspiring him to take this career path.

“Me and my dad have always been one to, if something breaks or something happens, we’ll go fix it before we pay someone to do it. So we’ve done a lot of work with water lines and sewer lines. It’s just what I found interesting. It’s always something you can learn from, it’s not repetitive. You get to learn a lot and you’re always exploring,” said Bradley.

Jacob’s mother, Angie Bradley, says she’s not surprised he’s already taking a big step in his career, always having a hard work ethic.

“It’s unbelievable what he’s doing for himself, the drive he has to commit to this type of job while he’s still in school. His dad and I are over the moon. He’s a great kid and we’re very lucky,” said Bradley.

Bradley says his last day of school is May 27th. He’s worked nearly full-time as a plumber since March while finishing out his classes. Congratulations, Jacob!