PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Something powerful is released when positive components are forged, and 19-year-old Liam Keenoy of Virginia Beach feels that power.

“It’s kind of like, I guess, art when you weld,” Keenoy said. “You put 100% in your work.”

Founded in 2018, the Skilled Trades Academy, tucked in a commercial space on Airline Boulevard in Portsmouth, had 550 students last year. Construction is underway on a new program to train more than 500 construction workers, with most Academy students qualifying for free classes.

“So here, once you get a certificate or a license, you’re typically going to be making in the range of $55,000 to $65,000,” said Art Hall, vice president for workforce solutions at Tidewater Community College, the Academy’s parent organization.

The program provides free child care, free emergency bus fare and emotional support. Kailym Burrus, 18, a graduate of Manor High School in Portsmouth, is enrolled in the welding program, and said it was an adjustment walking into the area for the first time.

“It was very loud,” Burrus said. “I didn’t know what to expect with the forklifts going and so many other people working with me.”

Academy officials say driving a forklift and other skills can position a student to help uplift the community.

“The selling point is, I don’t care where you are currently,” Hall said. “We want you to to get an industry-recognized credential and get to a job and be better for yourself, your family and your community.”

To learn how to enroll in the program, contact the Academy at 757-822-1234.