RALEIGH, N.C. — As more and more people continue to shop online, the United States also continues to face a decline in qualified truck drivers to to get those goods delivered.

From those aging out or retiring, to barriers of entry for younger workers, experts say several factors are causing the massive shortage. But a community college in North Carolina is leading the charge in helping high school students prepare and qualify early to meet the demand. 

What You Need To Know

 Students wanting to apply must be high school seniors turning 18 by April 30 of their graduating year

 Upon completion, students will earn a certificate and be able to take their CDL road test early and begin their career

 Those 18 to 21 with a CDL can drive within state lines

 JCC officials hope this training will help recent graduates immediately join the workforce and boost the regional economy 

Johnston Community College has been training future truck drivers for the last 75 years. Launched in 1949, officials at JCC say it’s the oldest truck driving school in the country.  

“They train in very intense situations, and they’re able to progress and do things once they leave here and be very professional at what they do,” said Maxie Kirby, chair of the JCC Truck Driver Training School.

The school is now at the forefront of the industry yet again, becoming the first in the state to offer special dual-enrollment training for students while they’re still in high school.  

“Having them train at such a young age really helps out because we have such a shortage, and they’ll be able to get into a career where they make a thousand dollars a week driving dump trucks or any other kind of truck, and they’d be able to retire in their mid-40s to 50s and they’d be setting themselves up for the rest of their lives,” Kirby added. 

Kirby knows all too well the benefits of the job and said trucking has transformed his life.  

“Back in 2005, I was unfortunate enough to lose my house. And NC Works was able to get me into a school where I could get my CDL, and I was able to rebound from being homeless and get everything I ever wanted from trucking. It’s amazing the difference what one license can do for somebody,” Kirby said.   

Now he’s working to train younger generations to take his place. Qualifying high school seniors can now enroll in community college trucking courses and work to acquire their commercial driver’s license (CDL) at an earlier age.  

“Yeah, I would have done it. I’d probably be in a much different position than I’m in right now,” said 19-year-old trucking student Doyle-Ray Boggess.

Boggess enrolled at JCC after high school, and says this type of program would have helped him jump start his dream of driving trucks with his brother in Alaska. His classmate, 19-year-old Dalton Snipes, agrees.  

“Oh, I would have loved it, man. Just getting in these trucks, it’s a crazy experience, man. Especially for the first time I got in here,” Snipes added.  

Students looking to apply through the Career and College Promise Program must be high school seniors who turn 18 by April 30 of their graduating year. Upon completion of the community college program, they’ll earn a certificate and be able to take their CDL road test early and begin their career. Those 18 to 21 with a CDL can drive within state lines. 

College officials hope this training will help recent graduates immediately join the workforce and boost the regional economy.  

It’s an experience and a career that Kirby and others in the industry expect will launch more students into the workforce, all while trying to help meet a growing demand.  

“They graduate here already having their CDLs and they get to go out and drive with other students and get that experience of being alone without an instructor. And they don’t have that anywhere else,” Kirby said.