MOULTRIE, Ga. – Students across the region traded one day in school for a hard hat and a bag of tools as they competed in this year’s South-Southwest Georgia Skills Challenge.
The purpose of the Skills Challenge is to increase students’ interest in the construction industry and help them gain exposure to some of the industry exhibitors. The event was at Spence Field and was one out of seven competitions hosted by the Associated General Contractors of Georgia in partnership with JCI Contractors this year.
The Moultrie program, which was Nov. 8, was the largest event so far in the regional competitions with approximately 21 participating high schools and over 100 program observers, according to Associated General Contractors of Georgia Chief Executive Officer Michael Dunham.
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This was the fifth South-Southwest Georgia Skills Challenge that’s been hosted in Moultrie.
“Workforce for us (is our number one) job because we have four people leaving our industry for every one (person) that we’re putting in,” Dunham told attendees during the opening ceremony. “That’s the challenge we have. We’ve got to introduce the construction industry to more young men and women to (help them) see it as a career path, and … it’s a really great career because it (has) high-paying, high-demand jobs.”
Lyndy Jones, the founder and president of JCI Contractors of Moultrie and president of the Associated General Contractors Georgia, said it’s important to get students exposed to the field early on in their high school career.
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“As the host contractor, our team understands the importance of the AGC Georgia Skills Challenge series to our construction industry,” Jones said in a news release before the event. “This is a great way for our company to help young people learn more about the numerous career paths within the construction industry while we also educate teachers, parents, school administrators, government officials and more at this incredible event.”
Southern Regional Technical College has been a recurring exhibitor since 2017. Students were able to test their welding skills at the school’s booth with Brad Simmons, the Tifton welding instructor, using a virtual reality welding training simulator.
Doug Elridge with Lasseter Tractor Company said it continuously pursues high school students to help them set career paths.
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Students had two hours to complete their challenges in seven construction categories, including carpentry, welding, plumbing, electric, blueprint reading, masonry and team building.
This year marked Calvin Pratt’s and Hayden Craft’s, students from Early County High School, second year attending the welding competition in the Skills Challenge. They said each year, the challenges change, and that keeps them interested.
Evalynn Sanford, a senior from Camden County High School, said competitions like the Skills Challenge and SkillsUSA have furthered her growth in the construction industry. Thanks to her experiences, she works with an architecture firm and plans to pursue an architectural engineering degree after graduation.