PASADENA, Texas – Commercial truck drivers are often not thought of as a key component of many industries, but the fact is almost everything is shipped by truck at some point in time, so industry must rely on the trucking business.

Jamie Harris and Roger Gonzalez, San Jacinto College alumni, are partners in JA Harris Trucking, Inc., a Houston-based trucking company.

San Jacinto College has been training commercial truck drivers for almost 30 years at its Central campus, and is known nationally as one of the top-rated schools for commercial truck driving training. The demand for truck drivers remains high year in and year out, yet the business has the most openings each year. Commercial vehicle operators have favorable work schedules, a growing financial base, and a quality job.

John Stephens, who oversees San Jacinto College’s commercial truck driving program, says that students who complete SJC’s training can expect to make “about $35,000 the first year, and then upwards of $60,000 to $70,000 after that.”

Others, like San Jacinto College alumni Jaime Harris and Roger Gonzalez, gross over $3.5 million annually as owners of their own trucking business. While the duo, friends since high school, did not graduate from SJC’s commercial truck driving program, they did go through the diesel technology program on the College’s North campus. After starting their own business working on diesel truck engines, their interest in the truck driving business grew, and JA Harris Trucking, Inc., was born.

“As an owner of a truck driving business, I get to do so many different things,” said Harris. “It’s not just what we do day in and day out. We move so many different products – from oil field pipes and equipment to minerals and crushed cars for salvage. Everything changes day to day. It’s never the same load twice.”

JA Harris Trucking pays its entry-level long haul drivers 40 cents per mile, which translates to anywhere from $800 to $1,400 per week. Drivers for the company are afforded an opportunity to drive at their own pace, scheduling when and where they stop for breaks. Harris notes that, “Although they are still an employee of our company, they are also independent. It’s like being their own boss.”

Job opportunities are plentiful for students who complete San Jacinto’s truck driving program. “Over 50 companies hire our students, both local and over the road,” noted Stephens. The Port of Houston, in close proximity to the College, moves over 200 million tons of cargo each year, and commercial trucks play a large role in getting the goods to their final destination. Commercial trucks transport everything large and small, and not just for industries such as those the Port of Houston serves. People’s daily needs and essentials, such as food and clothes, are transported every day by truck.

Students can expect over 800 miles of actual behind-the-wheel training once enrolled in San Jacinto College’s commercial truck driving program. The six-week training costs about $2,128, and is coordinated with the Department of Transportation so that students can earn their certificate upon completion of training. “Our students will learn all the basic entry-level driver needs, and a lot more,” added Stephens. “Our students receive more miles in training than anywhere else.”

The commercial truck driving program is offered through the Continuing & Professional Development (CPD) division of San Jacinto College. The CPD division offers programs and courses for individuals to retain or advance in their jobs, or make career transitions.  The division provides training to companies and their employees to meet employers’ demands for a highly skilled workforce, while helping incumbent workers reach their potential.

For more information about the commercial truck driving program, contact John Stephens by phone at 281-476-1886, via e-mail at john.stephens@sjcd.edu, or log on to http://www.sanjac.edu/.