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Idaho Students Tour Affordable Housing Building Sites
In the fourth stop on a five-city tour of job sites, 20 members of NAHB Student Chapters at Wood River High and Carey School in Idaho visited two affordable Community Housing Project homes under construction in the Quail Run subdivision.
Members of the Building Contractors Association of the Wood River Valley and the Blaine-Ketchum County Housing Authority participated in the Nov. 9 Freddie Mac-sponsored “Day at the Job Site” tour.
Sue Woodyard, president of Woodyard Enterprises and a member of the Board of Trustees of Home Builders Institute (HBI), the workforce development arm of NAHB, welcomed the students and spoke about the unique challenges of building homes in the area. Brian Bothwell of Bothwell Construction, described the progress of his career in the housing industry; and Michael David, of the housing authority, discussed the role of community organizations and institutions in providing safe, affordable housing.
“This event is a great opportunity for our builder members to connect with the next generation of home builders and explore the countless jobs to be had in our industry” said Woodyard. “This is a valuable experience for all involved.”
“Day at the Job Site” events have been held in Colonial Heights, Va.; Pittsburgh; and Juneau, Alaska. A fifth event is scheduled for December in Michigan.
The two Idaho schools are the latest to join the growing list of NAHB Student Chapters at high schools across the nation. Chapters in the Blaine County schools were chartered in Reno this fall by the NAHB Board of Directors. They are also partners in one of HBI’s first five pilot sites funded by a grant under “The President’s High Growth Job Training Initiative,” which has been created by the Labor Department’s Employment and Training Administration to increase recruitment into the residential construction trades.
According to Cyndie Woods, the schools’ Residential Construction Academy Program coordinator, the one-day event was “a perfect complement to our efforts to promote residential construction as a great career choice for young people.”
The NAHB Student Chapters program is administered by HBI. Established in 1971, the program helps enrich the educational experiences of students enrolled in construction-related studies and training. The chapters enable more than 3,000 students at 150 high schools, technical schools, colleges, universities and Job Corps campuses to enjoy the benefits of membership in NAHB.
For more information on “A Day at the Job Site” or NAHB Student Chapters, e-mail Joseph Krinock, or call him at 800-795-7944 x8928.
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