Inter State Waste Services Committed to Hiring Emerge Graduates. Here's What Built That.

One employer walked out of our April hiring event with 30+ resumes in hand. A couple of weeks later, they'd already hired 2 of our graduates. Now they've formally committed to hiring at least 50.

That employer is Interstate Waste Services (IWS). And the person who made this partnership real is David Brown Sr., MBA, Director of Safety at IWS. David showed up, stayed engaged, and kept the conversation going long after the event ended. That kind of follow-through is rare. This post is about what he set in motion.

The Event Was the Setup. The Story Is What Came After.

On April 16, 2026, we ran our CDL Community Employer Hiring Event at the Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn Heights Branch. 48 students showed up with resumes in hand. 9 employers were in the room. By every measure, it exceeded every goal we set for it.

▶ Watch the event recap here — you'll see what the energy in that room looked like.

The centerpiece was a live four-person employer panel that gave our students an honest, ground-level look at building a career in waste services and commercial transportation:

• David Brown Sr., MBA — Director of Safety, Interstate Waste Services
• Michael J. Cristina — Director of Safety, Boro-Wide Recycling
• Zach Miller — VP of Government Affairs, Trucking Association of New York
• Leroy Smalls — Driver Trainer, Sprague Operating Resources LLC

These weren't placeholder panelists. Each one came with real information, real hiring needs, and real talk about what the work actually looks like. Our students came prepared. The employers came to recruit. That combination — when it clicks — is exactly what we built this event to create.

IWS Didn't Just Show Up. They Recruited.

David Brown and his team didn't come to wave a banner. They came to hire.

IWS collected over 30 resumes that night — more than any other employer in the room. That's a Director of Safety and his team actively working the floor: talking to graduates, asking real questions, evaluating real talent.

The results came fast:

• ✅ 2 graduates hired directly from the event
• 🔄 More interviews actively in progress
• 📋 Formal commitment: IWS will hire at least 50 Emerge Career graduates from our program

Don't take my word for it — hear it directly from David himself:

▶ "We Need Many Drivers" — David Brown, Director of Safety, Interstate Waste Services

David says it plainly: IWS needs drivers. A lot of them. And they've decided Emerge graduates are who they want filling that pipeline. That's not a polite gesture — that's a hiring commitment backed by action already underway.

The Pathway: CDL Driver Helper → Full CDL Driver

Here's what makes this more than a job fair win. IWS isn't just handing our graduates a job and calling it done. They've structured a real career track.

Our graduates enter IWS as CDL Licensed Driver Helpers — working alongside experienced drivers, learning the operation from the ground up: the routes, the physical demands, the safety standards, the culture. This is intentional onboarding, not a holding pattern.

The pathway:

1. CDL Licensed Driver Helper — ride the routes, learn the company, prove reliability
2. Promotion to Full CDL Driver — with IWS directly or through their network of partner companies
3. Continue growing — IWS has a deep culture of promoting from within; their supervisors, managers, and dispatchers have been doing this for yearsMany of IWS's supervisors, managers, and other leadership staff started their careers as helpers, drivers, or dispatchers — and they are eager to promote from within.What's new is that Emerge Career is now a formal feeder into that pipeline — and IWS is backing that with a committed hiring number and graduates who are already on the job.

This isn't a gap-filler role. It's a launchpad.

A Genuine Thank You to David Brown and the IWS Team

Big-picture partnerships don't build themselves. They build because one person decides to show up, stay in it, and follow through after everyone else has gone home.

That person is David Brown Sr., MBA. David came to the panel, he engaged authentically with our students, and when the event was over, he kept the conversation going. He's the reason IWS has already made two hires, has interviews in progress, and has committed to 50 more. He's the champion here — and Emerge Career does not take that lightly.

To David and the full IWS team: thank you. You're not just hiring graduates. You're helping build what this entire program is designed to produce — a real, functioning pipeline from our community into careers in the trades. That matters more than you know.

What This Means If You're Building in This Space

A few things became clear through this process that I want to put on the record:

• Employers are hungry. IWS collected 30+ resumes in one night because the need is genuine.IWS is one of the most progressive and innovative providers of solid waste and recycling services in the country, and they still can't fill their driver seats fast enough. The CDL shortage is not abstract — it shows up as a Director of Safety personally working a hiring event floor.
• Structure beats intention. The Helper-to-Driver pathway works because it's a defined career track, not a vague "opportunity to grow." Our graduates know what Day 1 looks like and what promotion looks like. That clarity is what makes placements stick.
• One champion changes everything. David Brown didn't have to commit to 50 hires. He did it because he sees what Emerge graduates bring. If you're an employer reading this — be the David Brown at your company.

Partner With Emerge Career

If you're in waste services, trucking, HVAC, EV tech, or any skilled trade where you need a pipeline of trained, job-ready CDL talent — let's talk. We're actively building employer partnerships across the New York metro area and beyond.

→ Learn more about partnering with Emerge Career