Construction program builds students' skills

Faced with an ongoing shortage in the skilled trades, builders in Carson City and Douglas County are paying to educate the next generation of carpenters, plumbers and other craftspeople.

Some 27 high school students from Carson City and Douglas County are spending half their school day getting hands-on education in construction at Western Nevada Community College.

"We're telling them it's OK to put on a set of nail bags and go create something," said Rick DeMar, the executive officer of the Builders Association of Western Nevada.

DeMar explained the program is an attempt to address a developing crisis in the construction industry.

Nationwide, the average age of people working in skilled trades is in the mid-40s and relatively few young people enter the construction trades because they're steered toward college instead.

About 5,000 construction jobs will be added in Nevada each year of this decade, according to estimates by the state Department of Employment,Training and Rehabilitation.

Members of the Builders Association of Western Nevada often tell DeMar that the search for skilled workers is one of their biggest headaches.

While the 27 students who began the program last month may not put a big dent in the demand, DeMar said officials of the college, BAWN and the Douglas County Building Industry Association hope to attract about 30 new students each semester.

Ultimately, he said, officials hope the program will have an ongoing enrollment of 120.

That, in turn, will take a bigger financial commitment from the builders association to the college endowment it created to finance programs at WNCC.

"You have to grow the endowment if you want to grow the program," DeMar.

The association plans to raise the money in a way its members know best: Construction of a home, with sale proceeds to be directed to the endowment.

The training program begins with a heavy emphasis on safety and a reinforcement of the math skills that are critical in the building trades.

Most students will begin the two-year program as high school juniors some seniors started this year and may continue as college students next year and they'll get numerous chances to put their skills to work.

For starters, DeMar said, they'll probably build modular residential units that will be transported to Douglas County and installed as housing for a nonprofit agency that provides assisted living.

Members of the Builders Association, meanwhile, have offered to build a new facility for the Boys and Girls Club of Western Nevada at a sharply discounted price, and DeMar said that program also might provide some onthe- job training for the students.

Even more on-the-job training might be available for some students who are hired for summer help by contractors in the area.

Even if they decide to go to college to pursue degrees such as computer-assisted drafting or construction management, students in the WNCC program will have a head start.

The classes they're taking provide college credit as well as credits for high school graduation.

DeMar said about 35 students showed up at a meeting to hear the initial pitch about the program, and he expects interest will grow as current participants spread the word.

The message construction officials delivered was straightforward: You

don't need a college degree to earn a good living in construction, skilled craftspeople can advance to ownership of construction companies and the work is deeply satisfying as each completed job stands as a testament to good craftsmanship.

"We told school officials we didn't want their A and B students," DeMar said.

"We want their C, D and F students, the kids who are sitting there in English class wondering what this has to do with them.