Report of the MCAA Workforce Development Committee

Words: Todd Hartsell, Ryan Shaver, Reggie Wilson, Kelby Thornton

NCCER Update

Below is a list of achievements we were able to accomplish through our partnership with NCCER this year:
  1. NCCER and MCAA sponsored the Skills USA National Contest
  2. Reggie Wilson volunteered to be the MCAA representative to the NCCER Workforce Development Committee
  3. NCCER began Masonry Under the Hard Hat video (project was rescheduled due to accident at worksite)
  4. Gathered and shared information with MCAA on NCCER Sponsoring organizations that have masonry programs
  5. Participated in the Masonry Innovations and Workforce Development Zone during MASONRY MADNESS and sponsored the 2018 South of 40 Party
Marketing milestones:
  1. Plans are in the works to shoot a Build Your Future GoPro video featuring a worksite in Texas
  2. Articles have been written for the MCAA, along with MCAA being integrated into the NCCER blog
  3. Reggie Wilson represented the masonry industry as a guest speaker at the NCCER Pathways Conference in San Antonio

SkillsUSA

Louisville, Kentucky served as host for the 54th annual National Leadership and Skills Conference put on by SkillsUSA.

The MCAA continued its support of SkillsUSA. As a co-chair of the SkillsUSA Technical Committee, the MCAA, with co-chair Ryan Shaver, worked on many of the pre-show plans and details for the masonry competitions.

On Wednesday, contestants and their instructors were able to tour the Lehigh Plant. This tour provided an in-depth look at the mortar manufacturing process.

Thirty secondary and fourteen post-secondary students competed in the six-hour masonry competition on Thursday. The results are below:

Secondary:

Gold
Mason Saunders
Mount Pleasant High School
Mount Pleasant, N.C.

Silver
Cole Christadore
HH Ellis Technical High School
Danielson, Conn.

Bronze
Cole Rains
Eureka Springs High School
Eureka Springs, Ark.

Post-Secondary

Gold
Ashton White
Rowan Cabarrus Community College
Salisbury, N.C.

Silver
Bryce Dean
Williamson College of the Trades
Media, Penn.

Bronze
Jake Freeman
Wallace Community College
Selma, Ala.

Two contestants also competed to represent the United States in masonry at WorldSkills. Kelby Thornton was announced as the winner and will travel to Kazan, Russia this August with his instructor, Todd Hartsell. Kelby will also be building demonstration walls this week in the NCCER tent in the Masonry Innovations and Workforce Development Zone in the Bronze Lot.

Thank you to each of the sponsors and the dozens of volunteers who helped make the SkillsUSA Masonry Competition a success! We are already working on new ideas for future competitions, and look forward to seeing everyone June 25-28, 2019 in Louisville!

“Top 10 Reasons to Join Masonry” Brochure

The MCAA Marketing Committee has developed the “Top 10 Reasons to Join Masonry” workforce development promotional piece. An initial run of 5,000 brochures in English and 2,500 in Spanish were printed in September 2018.

The brochures can be ordered on the MCAA website at www.masoncontractors.org/careers. Brochures are free to MCAA members, and $1.00 each for non-members.

Special thanks to the Wisconsin Masonry Association and the Arizona Masonry Contractors Association for donating funds to help support this important project for our industry.

Top 10 Videos

The Top 10 Reasons to Join the Masonry Team video is complete! The video is available to view on the MCAA website at www.masoncontractors.org/careers and across the MCAA’s social media channels, including YouTube. The video will also be played throughout MASONRY MADNESS® Day on the Jumbo LED screen and the live webcast for thousands to see.

The Top 10 Reasons to Join the Masonry Team video sizzle reel highlights each of the top reasons to join the masonry team with testimonials from South of 40 members currently in the industry.

Each reason will also be broken out into individual pieces that will be easily shareable across social media channels, and keep the attention of young people looking to start or advance their career in the industry.

Masonry Baseball Cards

These digital “baseball cards” will feature real people in the industry, highlighting specific careers, MASONRY MADNESS competitors, and individuals who have dedicated their entire lives to the masonry industry.

Each card features masonry “stats” and highlights the benefits of a career in the industry.

Expect to see the cards available on the MCAA website in the very near future.

Community Group

The Committee has developed a community group for schools utilizing the NCCER curriculum. The community group allows instructors to share ideas and resources to help the teaching process. All instructors are welcome to join the group, which will launch this spring.
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