Building generations of electricians

In 1969 when the first training director was hired, the JATC was in an office at 2330 South Main, Salt Lake City. In 1995 the JATC was growing at a rate that required more office space. A decision was made to move the JATC to our present location in the new building that the Local Union had purchased at 2100 South 3400 West, Salt Lake City.

In June 1969 the committee decided to hire a full-time training director. Interviews were held and Milton Ouzts was hired as the first director. Milt resigned his position in December 1970. Clark Cushing was hired as the director and started in January 1971. He continued as the director until he retired in March 1982. Richard Bogus was hired as director and started in March 1982. He continued as the director until he retired in December 1992. David Kingery was hired in December 1992 and continued as the director until he retired in December 2008. In 1997 the JATC had grown to a point where an assistant director was needed. Carl Brailsford was hired and served as the assistant director from March 1997 to December 2008. Carl Brailsford was hired in December 2008 as training director for the program and retired May 20th, 2022. Michael Lanoue was hired as the assistant training director in November 2014 and was advanced as the Training Director September 2021.

The JATC has experienced many changes over the years going from as few as a dozen apprentices to over four hundred at our peak. Our schooling has evolved over the years from going to school two nights a week at the old Utah Vocational Institute in downtown Salt Lake (which has since been torn down) to going to school on Saturdays and then back to nights at the Salt Lake Community College, the Ogden Weber ATC and the Utah Valley State College. In 1999 the Utah Electrical JATC entered negotiations with the Ogden Weber ATC to start a day school for our apprentices. Since then, our Inside Wireman apprentices and Telecommunication apprentices have been attending day school here at the JATC classrooms in the Local Union building.

In July 2018, the Utah Electrical JATC rebranded by changing their name to Utah Electrical Training Alliance. The trust is still held under the Utah Electrical Joint Apprenticeship & Training Committee. The Committee commissioned the construction of a new training facility located in the center of the Salt Lake Valley for the continued advancement of the programs. This new training facility has been able to provide more hands-on training and room for continued growth in the electrical industry. The Utah Electrical Training Alliance staff moved into the new building, 7466 South Redwood Road West Jordan Utah 84084, in March 2019. The first class was held in April 2019. The building consists of 7 lab rooms, 5 classrooms, the front office, and a lobby.