From Trucking to Electrical Training: UEI Morrow Student Builds New Career

When life forced Anthony Bonner to start over, he didn’t expect that a skill he once paid others to handle would become the foundation for his next chapter.

He had spent years as a truck driver, crisscrossing states and building a life over the road. But after losing his brother in a tragic accident, things changed. The grief was overwhelming, leading to the loss of his job and his CDL license and leaving him in search of a new direction.

This search eventually brought Anthony to United Education Institute (UEI) in Morrow, where he discovered a new career path and a renewed sense of purpose.

Today, he’s a graduate from the Electrician Technician program, enabling him to step into a field he knows will support him throughout his life.

Before enrolling at UEI, Anthony wasn’t unfamiliar with hard work. When he wasn’t driving trucks, he and an old friend in his hometown of Chicago worked together to fix up and flip houses.

Throughout this process, Anthony noticed that one aspect of each project came with an especially hefty bill: the electric work.

“That electrician we worked with was expensive,” he said. “One day I thought, ‘Why don’t we learn to do this ourselves?’ We’d save money, and we’d get a skill no one could ever take away.”

So, following his brother’s tragedy and the loss of his job, Anthony started researching electrician technician training programs. This including looking at schools back in Georgia, where he’d previously lived. And while some schools didn’t respond to his interest for more information, UEI was responsive.

“UEI reached out and said they can get me in class immediately,” he said. “Next thing I know, I’m enrolled and I’m in class exactly when they told me I would be.”

And he immediately knew he’d made the right decision to enroll at UEI. He said the support wasn’t simply surface-level. It was woven into every aspect of his campus experience.

“I was attracted to the environment first,” Anthony said. “From the instructors to the department heads, everyone helps out. It’s not the blind leading the blind. They know the information [we need to know], and they want us all to win.”

Instructors Kedrick Bray and Poleon Griffin made an especially strong impact on Anthony.

“The program is accelerated, so you’re cramming a lot in a short time, but they make sure you understand it,” he said. “They prepare you for a great future. They don’t let you move to the next class without everything you need.”

The learning, he said, clicked for him in ways he didn’t expect. Concepts that once seemed complicated started to make sense, hands-on practice built up his confidence, and every class moved him one step closer to what he calls a “stable, meaningful, long-term career.”

The fields of solar, residential wiring, and PLC programming were especially appealing to Anthony.

“The great thing about the electrical field is that even after you find a good job, you can branch off,” he said. “There’s always room to grow.”

Another aspect of UEI that stands out to Anthony has been the support he’s gotten from the Morrow career services team.

“They’re wonderful,” he said. “Career Services really wants to see us win. If you lose your job, they’ll help you get another one. They help with résumés, applications, and interviews. They stay on us in a good way.”

Anthony appreciates that he never feels like he’s doing this alone. Whether it’s staying after class to use the computers or asking instructors for clarification, support is always available.

“They let you stay after class, they answer questions, they give you time,” he said. “The environment is just really helpful.”

Now, as a graduate, Anthony says he can finally pursue the career he’s been working toward.

“I’m very ambitious,” he said. “ I want something that’s mine. This field gives me that.”

Looking back over the last few years, Anthony knows the road wasn’t easy. But he also knows he made the right choice.

“For anyone thinking about doing this, follow your heart and go for it,” he said. “This knowledge will stick with you forever. You’ll become an asset, and no one can take that from you.”