Martin Electric joined community leaders, sponsors, and Girls Inc. of the Greater Capital Region today to announce the continuation of an initiative that will once again provide free summer camp experiences for 100 local girls.
Last year, Martin Electric became the inaugural sponsor of the program, contributing $15,000 to eliminate financial barriers for campers and partnering with Girls Inc. to host a Girls in Construction themed week. What began as a single sponsorship has since grown into a larger community effort, with additional organizations stepping forward to support and expand access for even more girls throughout the Capital Region.
"When Martin Electric partnered with Girls Inc. to launch this camp sponsorship initiative last year, our goal was simple: ensure that cost was never a barrier to opportunity," said Kendra Hart, President of Martin Electric. "It's been inspiring to see other organizations join that effort and help open even more doors for the girls across our community."
For Martin Electric, a WBE certified electrical contractor, it is a priority that we offer the exposure that allows girls to see the opportunities available to them. Sometimes all it takes is seeing someone who looks like you doing the job or hearing that you belong in that space.
"The lightbulb moment from last year's camp was how curious, creative and problem solving the girls were." Hart said, "I realized, that's what we lost in our industry. Our industry has become so textbook oriented, so two dimensional... What we really want to achieve is, how do we harness that energy the girls had? How do we protect the curiosity, the eagerness to succeed, the open-mindedness, the willingness to collaborate, and how do we bring that into the workforce? It's through programs like Girls Inc."
Whether these girls grow up to become electricians, teachers, engineers, business owners, healthcare professionals, or anything else they choose, our hope is that this experience helps them build confidence in themselves and recognize that there are no limits on what they can achieve.
Martin Electric is proud to continue supporting Girls Inc. and its mission of inspiring all girls to be strong, smart, and bold.
Learn more about Girls Inc. of the Greater Capital Region: Here!
Check out highlights from last year's summer camp: Here!
Martin Electric recently participated in Questar III’s Youth Apprenticeship signing day, officially welcoming Owen Valenchis as a 2026 Summer Intern.
The Questar III Youth Apprenticeship Program is designed to create a structured bridge between students exploring career opportunities and employers that participate in New York State registered apprenticeship programs. The program helps students gain real-world experience while earning educational credit, requiring a minimum of 200 hours during the summer internship period. We hope this experience further strengthens Owen’s interest in the electrical trades while giving him a better understanding of the opportunities available through the IBEW's JATC apprenticeship program.
Owen will spend the summer working alongside Martin Electric’s warehouse and field support teams where he will gain firsthand exposure to the electrical construction industry from the ground up.
Throughout the internship, Owen will assist with picking and packing material orders for active jobsites, organizing inventory, preparing deliveries, and shadowing material runs to projects throughout the region. The goal is to provide practical exposure to how projects are built, how materials move through the construction process, and how different teams work together to keep jobs operating efficiently.
As part of the signing day celebration, Martin Electric welcomed Owen with company apparel and gear to help him get ready for the summer ahead.
Workforce development continues to be a major focus for Martin Electric as the company works to support the next generation entering the skilled trades. Through partnerships with schools, apprenticeship programs, and organizations like Questar III, Martin Electric remains committed to creating opportunities for students to gain hands-on experience and explore long-term careers in the electrical industry.
See our Careers page for more information on internship opportunities here!
Thank you to the Rensselaer County Regional Chamber of Commerce and Questar III for creating a platform that promotes career opportunities for students and young adults in construction and for allowing me to be a part of their Workforce Development initiative.
As a millennial, I was part of a culture that stigmatized skilled trade ocupations with the term "blue collar." College seemed to be that only path to success. In reality, I saw many of my peers graduate college with insurmountable amounts of debt, meager salaries, and careers that left them unsatisfied. From healthy salariesa nd benefit packages to career advancement opportunities, there are so many great opportunities for young adults in trades that we are ignoring.
With an aging workforce and limited supply of the next generation of mechanics, carpenters, electricians and so on, we face a major problem: Who is going to build the future America?
While we, as a society, may undervalue trades, the marketplace doesn't.
To the parents, educators, and mentors of our youth: let's change the stigma and promote careers in traditional industries to the students who want to use both their mental intellect and physical strength to build the future.
Every topping-off ceremony marks an important milestone in construction. The final structural beam is set into place, signatures are added, and a project that has existed on paper for years begins to feel real.
For Hudson Valley Community College's new Applied Technology Education Center (ATEC), that milestone represents something much bigger than a completed steel frame. It represents opportunity.
ATEC's Topping-Off Ceremony
Set to open in 2027, the 125,000-square-foot facility will provide students with access to modern labs, classrooms, and equipment designed for careers in building systems, renewable energy, semiconductor manufacturing, automotive and transportation technologies, and other high-demand industries.
At a time when employers across New York continue to face skilled workforce shortages, investments like ATEC help create a stronger connection between education and industry. More importantly, they create opportunities for students to discover rewarding careers while providing employers with the skilled workforce our region needs.
When Hudson Valley Community College announced its philanthropic partners for ATEC in 2024, Martin Electric was honored to be among them with a $100,000 contribution. Like many organizations that supported the project, our investment reflected a simple belief: workforce development isn't something one organization can solve alone. It requires educators, employers, labor partners, and community leaders all working toward the same goal.
The conversation around workforce development often centers on what employers need. We talk about labor shortages, retiring workers, and the growing demand for skilled trades professionals. Those conversations are important, but they're only part of the story. The other part begins with students. Students deserve access to facilities that reflect the industries they hope to enter. They deserve opportunities to learn with current technology, develop practical skills, and explore careers they may not have previously considered. Just as importantly, they deserve to see that local employers are invested in their success long before graduation. That's why partnerships between education and industry are so valuable.
Martin Electric's Relationship to Hudson Valley Community College
For decades, Martin Electric has maintained a close relationship with Hudson Valley Community College. Many of our employees have developed their careers through programs connected to the college, and we've had the privilege of participating in advisory boards, classroom visits, career fairs, internships, annual scholarships and workforce development initiatives that help students understand the opportunities available in the electrical and construction industries. When the opportunity arose to support the Applied Technology Education Center, our decision wasn't about putting our name on a building. It was about supporting an institution that has consistently invested in our community and believing in the students who will one day help build, maintain, and improve the places where we live and work. Supporting ATEC was simply another extension of that relationship.
Contractors, educators, manufacturers, labor organizations, and public partners all have a role to play in developing the next generation of skilled professionals. No single organization can solve workforce challenges alone, but together we can create more opportunities for students to discover careers that are rewarding, challenging, and impactful.
Watching the final beam being placed on ATEC was a reminder that every major project begins with a foundation. For this facility, that foundation extends beyond concrete and steel. It's built on collaboration, shared investment, and a commitment to preparing people for successful careers that will strengthen our region for decades to come.
We congratulate Hudson Valley Community College on reaching this exciting milestone and are grateful to be one of many organizations supporting a project that will have a lasting impact on students, employers, and the Capital Region.
The foundation of Martin Electric's workforce development efforts is to really try and show up for our future workforce.
This month, we hosted students 35 students from both Capital Region BOCES locations for a workforce development day where they rotated through prefabrication, estimating, and apprenticeship interview preparation.
After a brief introduction from one of our electricians, Cam Barker, and some breakfast, the students rotated through several interactive sessions focused on real-world electrical work.
In our prefabrication shop, students wired Romex into junction boxes with single gang duplex receptacles while learning basic installation techniques, tool safety, and the importance of planning before starting a task. They also got a firsthand look at our electricians building a temporary power skid for a large industrial project currently underway in the area — giving them exposure to the type of fast-track, large-scale work happening right here in the Capital Region.
Students also participated in an apprenticeship interview preparation and Union 101 session where they learned what to expect during the apprenticeship application process and how to make a strong first impression. Topics included the importance of eye contact, a firm handshake, communication skills, and how to confidently answer even the most unexpected interview questions.
During the estimating rotation, students learned how electrical contractors count drawings and build project pricing before work ever reaches the field. They were introduced to markups, competitiveness, and profitability, then challenged to put together their own final project numbers — giving them a chance to see how differently everyone may cost out the same scope of work.
The day wrapped up with a complete company presentation covering Martin Electric’s background, different career path opportunities, and what life in the trade really looks like, and Q&A session where students had the opportunity to ask questions directly to our team about careers in the trades, jobsite experiences, and future opportunities in the industry.
Interested in teaming up for a workforce development event? Please reach out to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Workforce development has become a regular part of what we do at Martin Electric. Throughout the year, we host local schools at our shop and facilitate hands-on rotations focused on prefabrication, estimating, and apprenticeship preparation as part of our own internal workforce development advocacy. While we naturally focus on opportunities within the electrical trade and the IBEW apprenticeship pathway, we also recognize that every trade on a construction site depends on one another. Strong projects require strong trade partners, and we believe investing in the next generation of skilled tradespeople benefits the entire industry.
This month, Martin Electric hosted students from New Lebanon High School for a hands-on workforce development day at our shop. The students rotated through prefabrication, estimating, and apprenticeship interview preparation sessions where they learned how projects are built, planned, and bid before work ever reaches the field.
Students bent conduit in our prefab shop, practiced problem-solving and communication skills, learned the basics of estimating and project planning, and gained insight into the union apprenticeship process and interview expectations.he goal was simple: give students real exposure to the trades while helping build confidence and practical skills they can carry with them wherever their careers take them.
Interested in teaming up for a workforce development event? Please reach out to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
In 2025, Martin Electric committed to removing a barrier that too often stands in the way of opportunity: cost.
By partnering with Girls Inc. of the Greater Capital Region, we made it possible for 100 girls to attend summer camp completely free of charge, ensuring that every camper had the opportunity to learn, explore, and discover new interests regardless of their financial circumstances.
This year, we were excited to return for the second year of our sponsorship with a week we proudly call GIRLS INC-onstruction Week.
Our team kicked off the week by serving lunch before leading an afternoon focused on the world of construction and the skilled trades. But our goal wasn't simply to talk about becoming electricians, it was to show the girls just how many different people it takes to build a successful company. From electricians, project managers, and estimators to marketing, finance, human resources, and safety professionals, every project depends on people with unique skills, perspectives, and ideas.
Innovation doesn't happen because everyone thinks the same - it happens because they don't.
One conversation stood out throughout the afternoon. When we asked the girls what they noticed about the construction industry, many pointed out that they don't see enough women represented in the skilled trades. Even more inspiring was, several of them said they wanted to help change that.
The girls also rolled up their sleeves for a hands-on electrical activity, using a battery, copper tape, and an LED to build a simple circuit that lit up their own Girls Inc. lightbulb. Along the way, they learned that troubleshooting, persistence, and problem-solving are all part of engineering and construction.
As a Women Business Enterprise (WBE), Martin Electric understands the importance of creating spaces where young women can see themselves reflected in our industry. We believe the future of construction depends on welcoming people with different backgrounds, experiences, and ideas, while ensuring every young person knows there is a place for them if they choose this path. Whether these campers become electricians, engineers, project managers, marketers, teachers, or entrepreneurs, we hope they leave knowing that they are capable of building, creating, leading, and solving problems.
We're grateful to Girls Inc. of the Greater Capital Region for continuing to empower girls to be strong, smart, and bold, and we're proud to play a small part in helping spark that confidence.
