Graduate Connections – Meet Erika Amacker

Erika, 22, was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan; she moved to Arizona in 2019 after graduating high school. Erika completed the nine-month Electro-Mechanical Technologies (EMT) program at RSI in June 2023. 

Thanks for your time, Erika; what brought you to Phoenix in 2019?

Family. I had my mom’s side of the family over here. We also had a polar vortex that year where it got below zero, and I was pretty much done with the cold! 

You moved from a freezer to an oven! What did you do before enrolling at RSI?

New city, new state, so I decided to go to community college. I enrolled in late classes, but covid arrived before class started. I didn’t want to learn in a covid environment, so during covid I was mostly home. I ended up getting a seasonal job at Amazon, and I caught covid there! I had some time off and then I went back to my first job, which was working at Dairy Queen. I’d worked for them in Detroit, so I transferred my skills to Dairy Queen here, where it’s much hotter so it was much busier. Early on they realized I had experience, so they promoted me to shift lead. They had me closing and cashing out at night. It was cool, it was fun for a minute, but I knew it wasn’t something I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

So, where did the idea of going to RSI come from?

After moving to a second DQ location, I got sick. While I was off work at home, our freezer went down. I had a guy come out to fix it; his name was Joe Black. We were talking, and I told him that I’d taken a mechanical engineering class in high school and learning how to fix things interested me. He showed me a few things and told me that I should look into RSI. He said they have great programs, they make it easy to learn, and they’ll even help you find a job. The conversation really resonated with me, so I decided to research the school. I went on the website, put my contact details in and an advisor called and invited me for a tour.

What made you decide to enroll? 

I toured the school in September 2022. They walk you through the classes, the different things they give you, what they teach you, and what I’d get out of the program. Then we got to financial aid; I’m looking at it, and I realize this isn’t a huge college expense where I’m going to be $150,000 in debt. My program cost $24,000 and that was before scholarships, before FAFSA, before everything. I thought this is definitely something I can pay off in this career field…it’s going to pay for itself. I knew that the more that I learned, the more I’d get paid. I said to myself, “This is actually something that’s doable!” My program was nine months; this isn’t four years to get a college degree. This is nine months. I can go in, they can teach me what I need to know, and then I can go out and actually apply it in the field. Sitting in that office, I knew right then and there that this was something I wanted to do.  I said, “Let’s do it. Sign me up.” Classes started two weeks later. 

From your research, did you know you wanted to do the EMT program, or did it come up on the tour? 

I actually went into RSI thinking I’d get my Refrigeration/HVAC certification on the six-month Refrigeration Technologies program. But once they told me what was included in the nine-month EMT program, like solar and more electrical, I knew I might as well get all the knowledge I can while I’m young and apply it later.

What did you enjoy most about your time at RSI?

On the program, it was the troubleshooting. You take your meter to a system and just try to figure out what’s wrong with it. You put your probes in different places, get different readings, try to see what you’re missing. Then, once it clicks, you’re like, “Oh, okay, I get it now. I know it.” It’s that feeling of getting hands-on with what you’re reading in the books. You can read something, but once you understand it mechanically, it clicks. 

The instructors were pretty cool too. Bill Oliver made his jokes, he’d do it to everyone. He treated me like everybody else, which was cool because I didn’t want people to treat me differently because I was the only girl. He just made sure it was a nice, fun, safe environment where everyone can learn and have fun at the same time. Cody was cool too. After class finished, he’d let us work on the systems, do what we needed, and if we had any questions or needed anything, just to let him know. I stayed after class pretty much three out of four days with a friend as we had to wait for a bus home. He’d help us out all the time – no judgment. He was younger himself, so he could relate to us. He was a really good instructor. He actually gave me Top Tech! 

Are you a puzzle person? We speak to a lot of HVAC folks who love solving puzzles!

Yes! My mom and I actually do thousand-piece jigsaw puzzles. That’s pretty much our hobby!

So, how did you find the program? Was it hard?

Being the only girl in my class for about six months was a factor, but most of the guys were cool. It wasn’t a big thing, but some guys are just ‘guy guys’, you know, and that’s fine. But I really don’t have any background in HVAC or mechanical stuff. A lot of the guys had already worked in the field, so they already had some of the knowledge. So, I’d say the first couple days in every phase are the hardest; you’re learning something new, something you didn’t know before. During those first couple days in each phase, you feel unsure because it seems like you’re getting everything wrong, or you just don’t get it. But once it clicks in your head, you’re like, “Okay, I understand this. It’s not that hard. I understand it.” 

You graduated about a year ago, but you just started work recently. What happened?

When I graduated, I didn’t have a driver’s license. Most jobs need you to have a license because you’re going to be on the road. So, I got my license in August and then in September/October, I started interviewing. But that’s when it’s starting to cool down; some jobs weren’t hiring people as urgently, and if they were hiring, they wanted more experienced techs. Then my uncle died. When that happened, I had to take care of the day-to-day of running the house. I did that for a while until things got back under control and I felt I was in a position to start sending out my résumé again. Cooper in Career Services stayed on it. He texted me, “We have a job here, look out for this company, apply for this online.” Cooper stayed on it no matter what. 

Our condolences for your uncle. So, it was life circumstances, not the job market, that slowed you down?

Exactly. 

You work for Parker & Sons now, congratulations! 

I do. I started in HVAC Service on maintenance, but I’m still in training for a couple weeks. Their intention is to hire us as Joes [Journeyman Oriented Education] as they call us and let us see different fields and train us in everything. I got the opportunity because Cooper sent in my résumé. I got a text from a recruiter/trainer asking if I was still interested in a job. He said he was looking to hire a group of people who he can train up as Joes. I told him I was very interested. So, we set up an initial interview which went very well. He told me it was a hard job; they had a boot camp where I had to pick up and carry a compressor to prove I’m strong enough to handle the physical demands of the job. But I did it and got hired in June.

Congratulations! Are you happy with the money you have started on, and the potential?

I’m excited because I haven’t made this much hourly at any of my jobs before, except for overtime. But I’m really excited about what this career can do for me, my family, and anything I want to do in the future. Right now, it’s just me. No husband, no kids, so I’m just saving up, building for my future. I still live at home. It’s me, my mom, and my brother. So, I’m saving up and putting money into our family, our house, the things we want to do as a family. 

What’s your career plan from here? 

I’m committed to Parker for a couple years at least. In the future I would definitely like to see other companies, discover the different ways I can apply my EMT diploma in different jobs. Parker is a good company, but I don’t want to just be stuck in one place. I want to see all the different things HVAC can offer. 

Would you like to have your own business one day? Is that a career goal?

I do like the thought of having my own business. In 20 years, I’ll be 42. So, by then I’ll have a nice amount of school, a good amount of experience, I’ll be a nice age where I could start my own company, especially with the right people. My friends at RSI and I always joked, Erika and the boys, that we can have our own company. We all know the trade, we all know each other, and we know we are hard workers. I would definitely like to have my own business with people who know what they’re doing. 

What do you enjoy most about this trade? 

A part of it is actually solving the problem, but a bigger part is helping someone who is without A/C or without heat, someone who is just experiencing a problem. Knowing I can come in, ease their fears, ease their worries, fix their problem, and leave a happy customer. That is very rewarding.

Did you make some friends, connections, people you will stay in touch with at RSI?

Yes. I posted a picture of me working on systems; two of my friends texted me and said, “Oh, I see what you’re doing. I’m glad to see you out working. We all need to hang.” I was like, yeah, we really do. Our class is really close, so those people, those connections, are still there.

What advice do you have for new students to be successful at RSI? 

Don’t second guess your decision to come to RSI. If you’re having a problem, the teachers, career services, student services, anyone there on campus is willing to help with any problem you have, any tutoring you need. Once I became a Student Ambassador, they had me tutor multiple people. I didn’t know people actually used the service, but they do. Everybody is there to help whenever someone needs it. RSI has a good system in place to help the students, so make the most of it. See it through.

If you’re an RSI graduate and would like to share your success and be an inspiration to others, please email [email protected] to be considered for a Graduate Connection interview. Please include details such as your graduation date (month/year) and program.