A PIONEER IN EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE

by Elsa Cavazos

Pedro J. Cevallos-Candau, Ph.D., P.E, has always demonstrated progressive executive leadership for more than 35 years. He cofounded Primera Engineers, Ltd., in 1987 and sold the firm in 2016. During this time the firm grew to become one of the largest Latino-owned engineering firms in the country. The Chicago Tribune named Primera Engineers as one of Chicago’s Top Workplaces several years in a row. He launched PECECA Business Consultants, a management consulting firm, in March 2016. In 2021, he was assumed the position of Vice President for Workforce Development at St. Augustine College.

Dr. Cevallos-Candau has been a leader for the empowerment of Hispanic professionals in the Chicago area for years. He was a founding member of the Chicago Chapter of the Society of Hispanic Engineers (SHPE) and was involved in the formation of the Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement (HACE). “My story is not very common, my mother was Originally from Span and my father was from Ecuador. They met in Madrid when my father had a junior position at the Ecuador Embassy and from then they got married and went to Ecuador,” Dr. Cevallos-Candau said.

“Both were academics and with time they decided they wanted to come to the United States but they could not find a university which would admit them both. They found an opportunity in Puerto Rico, we packed our suitcases and moved,” he said. Dr. Cevallos-Candau studied in Puerto Rico, where he majored in civil engineering, and later earned a Doctorate in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois, in Champaign/Urbana.

THERE MUST BE A BASIC FOUNDATION OF EDUCATTION TO ACHIEVE A BETTER ECONOMY AND INCORPROATE IN TO THE MIDDLE CLASS.

He then had the opportunity to go to the Illinois Institute of Technology as a professor. “I learned it was not what I wanted to do. I then realized I wanted to be an entrepreneur and worked as a consultant in Chicago,” Dr. Cevallos-Candau said. He then ventured out and started Primera Engineers during the recession. According to Cevallos-Candau, Primera Engineers grew into two different areas. One being the vertical area, which are buildings and horizontal which was bridges, highways and airports.

“At the beginning of the 2000s we were looking into transmitting electricity and it was one of the areas which grew more and took us out of Chicago,” he said. Cevallos said you have to be an employer of choice and made it a priority to have a high quality program to serve clients as best as possible. The success of Primera was because it always invested in its employees. “I have to offer all kinds of incentives and opportunities so they do not choose another company. Any business needs to have the right employees, that is the key to success,” he said.

Five years ago, the company was sold and Cevallos-Candau retired and served in St. Augustine College’s Board of Directors. This is an accredited, independent, non-profit college, with four locations in Chicago and one in Aurora, Illinois. It offers Associate and Bachelor degrees, is committed to promoting success through education, and is in the process of transforming into a university. Soon after he joined St. Augustine’s board, the President, Dr. Reyes Gonzalez, asked him to take over the reins at the college’s Institute for Workforce Education (IWE), which he accepted.

The roots of education in his family helped him realize the importance of developing a prosperous economy through leadership and education. “Definitely, part of what has been discussed at the Illinois Latino Caucus Foundation, of which I am a member, is that there must be a basic foundation of education to achieve a better economy and to incorporate into the middle class. There are more Latinos joining the workforce and education allows them to earn beyond the minimum wage and incorporate into the middle class,” he said.

Much of the training offered by IWE is focused on the incumbent workforce. “We train current employees of companies and non-profits. We have a client in the food industry who needs certifications for Wal-Mart and we can help with that, it is one case,” Cevallos-Candau said. “Other groups need to maintain licenses or are required to train employees when a law is passed. The institute provides training, in various languages, in manufacturing, construction, health, professional services and other areas. We also provide small business training,” he said.

IWE has developed strategic partnerships to expand its workforce and small business training with various entities that include the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce and the Hispanic American Construction Industry Association. At the same time, young people are being trained so that they can become electricians, carpenters, etc. “I am meeting with a group who needs airplane mechanics and we are pursuing multiple training opportunities.” “I am excited about expanding our training services at St. Augustine and IWE. Our economy is changing rapidly and, in order to succeed in the workforce or as a business, we must adapt and stay up-to-date with the skills needed to move ahead and be successful,” He concluded.

ABOUT IWE

The Institute for Workforce Education is a division of St. Augustine College and is the leading provider of dual-language workforce development services in Illinois. Their mission is to add value to businesses and organizations by delivering resultsdriven career and professional development and customized training services in a responsive, professional manner. They deliver training to businesses and individuals through comprehensive model designed to achieve one main goal: develop qualified professionals with market-ready skills.