January 30, 2012
Nation's Building News

The Official Online Newspaper of NAHB

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Workforce Development
Plumbing Student Excels in National Trade Competition, With Support of HBI Instructor
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HBI plumbing graduate Sean Connolly placed fifth against more experienced plumbers at the 2011 national Skills USA competition, where he had to fabricate a bathroom and mop room with a floor drain in six and a half hours.

After spending less than 10 months learning his new trade, Home Builders Institute plumbing graduate Sean Connolly placed fifth against much more experienced plumbers in the most recent national SkillsUSA trade competition.

With help from HBI plumbing instructor John Gallagher, of the Fred G. Acosta Job Corps Center in Tucson, Ariz., Connolly not only learned the skills necessary to successfully compete in the national trade and career competition, he was able to overcome the challenges he faced when he was younger.

At the 2011 national SkillsUSA Championships, he successfully completed a series of plumbing projects in an allotted six and a half hours in head-to-head competition with other plumbers.

More than 5,700 contestants competed in 94 events at the championships, which showcasethe abilities of the best career and technical education students in the country. Industry representatives help evaluate student performance, and the competition helps keep the career training pertinent to employers’ needs.

After beginning his plumbing training with the HBI Job Corps program in Tucson in 2010, Connolly was able to do extremely well ― and turn his life around ― because he set goals for himself and worked hard, said Gallagher, who recognized his student's potential and encouraged him to enter the SkillsUSA competition.

“We sat down and he wrote a list of what he wanted to accomplish,” Gallagher said. “Sean is very goal-oriented and just never stopped until he reached every one of his goals.”

Alongside his HBI Job Corps training, Connolly spent four months preparing for the competition. He had to learn how to read a blueprint, connect cast iron pipe and rough in a bathroom — all within the allotted time and without assistance.

Connolly placed first in the regional and state SkillsUSA competitions in Arizona, which required that he build a bathroom from scratch. Those finishes qualified him for the national competition, where he created the plumbing for a bathroom and a mop room with a floor drain.

Connolly credits the HBI Job Corps program with helping him gain the skills to be proficient in his trade.  

“The HBI Job Corps program worked well for me because I could learn at my own pace and take my time until I understood everything,” said Connolly.

The program also helped boost his employability. Connolly is now working as a plumbing apprentice in California.

For more information on HBI Job Corps, email Keith Albright at HBI, or call him at 800-795-7955 x8911.

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