You just outlined what I believe to be a good plan for many young people, including my son (who is currently a few years younger than college-age): community college, taking a mix of vocational and academic classes; training at, say, a crane operating school; ten or more years as a crane operator; return to college to get a B.A. and on from there.
Thats how I paid for my degree without any student loans. Yeah it took me 12 years but i didn’t owe a dime in student loans