When Tim Mosley graduated from high school 40 years ago, he says he wouldn’t have believed someone who told him he’d be the manager of field personnel for a global construction company.
It was not an accident. For more than 50 years, Haskell, an architecture, engineering and construction company in Jacksonville, Fla., has partnered with the Northeast Florida Builders Association (NEFBA) and high schools in the region to recruit young people for its apprenticeships.
Clay County, south of Jacksonville, has the most extensive Career & Technical Education program, with 40 classes in its six high schools.
“I came out of the carpentry program at Orange Park High School,” Tim Mosley said. “I learned about Haskell, and I used that opportunity. I never dreamed I’d have a position like this with Haskell. I do the hiring, training and development for our field operations.”
He also oversees the apprenticeships and outreach with schools.
“A lot of people coming out of high school don’t have a clear path for a career,” Tim Mosley said. “We show them they have other options besides college or the military. They are treated with respect and provided with a living wage, good benefits and opportunities to grow. We work with them in-house to help them grow in the trades so they can move up to project manager or superintendent or whatever way they want to go.”
Christina Thomas is NEFBA’s director of workforce development, working with over 200 contractors who offer over 500 apprenticeships for carpenters, electricians, HVAC technicians and plumbers. Only two other builders’ associations offer apprenticeships in Florida.
“Each contractor has a different approach,” Thomas said. “Some want apprentices with good attitudes and good attendance. Haskell wants the top tier, the cream of the crop.”
The four-year apprenticeships are full-time jobs that include hands-on work during the day and classroom instruction at night offered by NEFBA and paid for by the sponsoring contractor.
The apprentices earn college credits and receive a certificate of completion from the Florida Department of Education.
NEFBA recruits apprentices in high schools with trades programs. Thomas works with schools in four counties, bringing her experience as a high school guidance counselor to the classes and events introducing students to the trades.
Apprenticeships can begin as soon as a student graduates; the relationship with contractors starts much sooner.
Kelly Mosley, who oversees career and technical education classes in Clay County, says business partners are critical to the programs’ success. Some contractors are small businesses, and others, like Haskell, are large companies.
“What they do is up to them. They can help in small ways and big ways,” Kelly Mosley said. “They help us bridge the gap to provide real-world, hands-on experiences we can’t show the students. They can explore careers and network, see the opportunities in different industries.”
Business partners advise the schools about the curriculum and how the needs of the industries are changing, Kelly Mosley said. They visit classes, sponsor construction career days, conduct mock interviews, judge contests and host field trips to construction sites. They also make grants and in-kind donations.
The partners also ensure that the kids have fun competing in nail-driving contests, designing bridges out of spaghetti and building scale model houses.
However, Kelly Mosley said the biggest incentive for the students is Haskell’s annual Gold awards, which are given to the top students in each trade at each high school.
“Instructors start talking about the awards in the ninth grade. It’s a really big thing. They all want to win,” Kelly Mosley said. “The kids know that it gives them a leg up for a job with Haskell.”
Tim Mosley remembers how badly he wanted to win the Gold Hammer, the award Haskell created in the 1970s for the top carpentry student in each school. Taped to the back was a Haskell business card. The award went to another student, but Tim Mosley got an apprenticeship.
Since then, Haskell has added awards for all the trades. Tim Mosley said he tries to hire award winners.
“I look at their work ethic, their ability to show up every day,” he said. “They’re young and full of energy.”
Kelly Mosley said that with the growing interest in workforce training, more schools and businesses are forming partnerships.
“I would encourage business partners to get involved and not let the size of the company hinder you,” she said. “We have companies of all sizes and resource levels that are very valuable.”
Tim Mosley said he sees more contractors interested in working with the schools.
“You’ve got to get out there and encourage the school boards to start or expand CTE programs and convince career counselors that not everyone is going to college,” Tim Mosley said. “For a long time, the trades had the stigma of ditch digging. But it’s not like that anymore. It’s a viable career.”
Opinions expressed by SmartBrief contributors are their own.
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