Recently, associates in both Minneapolis and Denver were able to showcase their knowledge and work to young students thanks to the Construction Careers Foundation and Denver Urban Scholars.
Minneapolis associates, including Kelly Hovde, Jeff Walker, Alex Lord and Justin Saterbak, visited students in the MN Trades Academy (MTA) at Como High School in Saint Paul. MTA is sponsored by Construction Careers Foundation and offers educational and hands-on learning experiences through summer internships for Minneapolis and Saint Paul high school students. The students at Como High School were from different schools across Minneapolis and Saint Paul, but were all participating in the construction portion of the Right Track Program, which is run by the City of Saint Paul.
Following a quick classroom orientation, the workforce development-focused activity allowed Justin, project engineer for Opus AE Group, L.L.C., to walk through architectural drawings that included a steel-stud wall with a window. The students then worked with Kelly, Pat, Jeff and Alex to construct the wall. The students were towards the end of their six-week construction program, but to date, it had mostly focused on residential construction, so the steel studs were a new experience.
In Denver, associates welcomed Opus Foundation® grantee Denver Urban Scholars (DUS) to The Glenn at The Jones District in Centennial. The goal of the event was to provide a high-level introduction to career opportunities in the real estate and construction industries to middle and high school students that were part of the DUS program. The Glenn project team, consisting of JR Reynolds, Jaymes Kralicek, Bill Grove, Shawn Allen and Nick Lauters, provided a tour of the job site. The group walked the exterior of the building and the north side of the first floor of the building pointing out project highlights and construction means and methods. Following the tour, Brian Dietz joined the group to provide insights into real estate career opportunities.
“This was a great opportunity to team up with an organization that is dedicated to improving the future of the youth that live in our surrounding communities,” said Nick Lauters, project manager for Opus Design Build, L.L.C. “The Glenn team had a lot of fun sharing their personal stories and project roles and responsibilities with these kids that showed an interest in having a career in construction and real estate.”
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