Nathan (Nate) Romer is an early graduate at Marco Island Academy, who walked with the class of 2024. 

From a young age, Nate thought he was going to take over the family company and work in construction. After graduation, he took classes at FSW to get his general contractor’s license, while also working for his father’s company as a laborer at the same time. He soon realized that college wasn’t for him and became interested in power lines and line work. He says, “Since high school, my plans changed from wanting to own a construction company, to wanting to become a lineman and work on power lines.”

Weeks of debates went on, and he finally realized this is what he wanted to do. After conducting research on the career, he discovered the best way to enter the industry was to attend school. Nate attended the ELITE Lineman Training Institute in Tunnel Hill, GA. He says, “ Being young, since I graduated high school early, I was much younger than anyone I was working with and had much less experience. This was challenging because it led to my not being able to do as much and be criticized more for my work or style of work.” For 11 weeks, he learned everything he needed to know about line work and the proper way to do it. 

Nate now works for Pike Electric as a C Class Transmission Lineman and couldn’t be happier. Nate mentions “I enjoy the thrill of being up in the air, working with heavy machinery and equipment. I also enjoy the fact that every day is different and you are constantly learning something new.” 

Nate is a perfect example that you don’t need to go to college to get a great career. He says, “Take your time finding something you are really passionate about, and college is not the only way to success.”