Tonya Hicks, Atlanta-based business owner and entrepreneur is enlightening the next generation of electricians

Thursday morning, on the campus of Georgia Tech, I moderated a symposium sponsored by Leadership Atlanta on public education preparing the next generation for the future workforce. It was a conversation about the ever-evolving economy and jobs.

Among the audience was a woman asking very pointed, insightful questions of the educators and business leaders seated on the stage.

She knew the subject well and stirred the panel.

After the Leadership Atlanta event ended, I hustled over to meet Tonya Hicks, founder, president and CEO of Power Solutions International, an Atlanta-based electrical business of almost 30 years.

"The Bureau of Labor estimates 2% of electricians, and electrical engineers in this country are women; I'm one of them," said Ms. Hicks with a smile on her face.

Figure that less than 2% are African American women. So how does a Mississippi native, a Central State (HBCU) alum from Ohio, wind up in mid-1990s Atlanta building a successful, long-running technical business?

"Like a lot of people out of college, Atlanta was a place of opportunity and jobs. I was a math major with a computer science minor coming out of school. I didn't want to teach and had spent summers working construction," offered the 53-year-old entrepreneurial journeyman electrician. "My coworkers told me about the IBEW (Union). It was free to learn and that's what I did."

Ms. Hicks directs two companies. One employs 11 Atlanta area workers, the other has 20 employees. They engage in lighting distribution, power, and utility scale solar, plus a wide range of other electrical pursuits.

In 2019, the U.S. State Department tapped Ms. Hicks to represent American Energy entrepreneurs at a world summit in Europe.

"I come from a family of nurses and teachers; they were upset with me when I shared my career goals, but I knew what I wanted to do," offered Ms. Hicks with a strong, resolute voice. "While my professors were dismissive over gender, my grandmother supported me completely."

I asked if she was surprised more women aren't involved in an occupation that would seem to offer unending opportunities in 2026. 

"No, I'm not surprised, it's really tough and really hard. You need a lot of support to succeed. Look I'm a single mother, my boys are 33 and 20, the youngest is about to be a sophomore at Morehouse. They have always worked with me. Both boys were on construction sites at a young age and now know all about the business of building."

Ms. Hicks is committed to sharing her knowledge with young people. She operates a paid internship program with Georgia Tech, Georgia State, Morehouse, Spelman and Clark Atlanta.

The internships are very active in the local community, connecting energy with public health.

Much is made about the value of a college education these days. Does a degree in the liberal arts, or a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy, art, political science, communications, still warrant going into debt?

"I'm going speak from the African American community. Once we started going to college, we looked down on mechanics, electricians, handymen skills. The belief was these jobs didn't pay. When I was a fourth-year apprentice, I was making $80,000 a year. We have been making 6 figures in these jobs and that's the bare minimum; no one seems to talk about that."

Tonya Hicks believes young people entering college, should reassess their career goals and learn a trade. The discipline of these jobs takes on added importance because of the emergence of AI.

"There are so many staggering opportunities out there. Skilled workers can go from project to project and travel the world courtesy of an employer paying for all their expenses. I can't tell you how many young people that I've helped send from around here, are now touring the world because of their abilities."

Ms. Hicks believes we are living in a new gilded age. 

"With AI, it's like the new Industrial Revolution: it's changing everything we do, possibilities are endless. For students, it's incredible for them to get out on these job sites and see what's possible. Incredible careers can be had."

Tonya Hicks is a remarkable person. Her talents, entrepreneurial pursuits and give back to Atlanta is exceedingly rare. A keen sense of humor has helped navigate through a male-dominated world with a quick laugh she says, "There about 10 female electricians in Atlanta. The men always learn quickly: We (women) are tougher than they are."

Ms. Hicks is also founder of the groups "She EV" and "Women Do Everything."