The first step to opening a new world of potential for a well-paid, rewarding career in the construction trades for Mooseheart kids is awareness. ICC found a way to help.
During our involvement in the bridge-breaking event, we realized that the vast majority of Mooseheart students were not aware of the construction trades as a career option. Mooseheart has a generous scholarship program for college, but the reality is, not every child is college bound. With their apprenticeship programs, higher hourly rates and employment benefits, skilled trades can offer an excellent path for some. At ICC, we saw a perfect opportunity to deepen the impact we could have on these young lives—we decided to organize and host the first annual Mooseheart Construction Trades Career Day.
We worked with CISCO (Construction Industry Service Corporation) to assemble representatives of key trade unions and have them give presentations to the kids in a career day format.
We worked with CISCO, a non-profit organization formed to foster cooperation between unionized construction trades and contractors and strengthen the industry as a whole, to organize the event. With many trades seeing or projecting labor shortages, participation in a career day for Mooseheart was an opportunity for CISCO to contribute meaningfully both to the industry and the community.
We scheduled nine trades—carpenters, plumbers, pipefitters, ironworkers, bricklayers, tuckpointers, painters, laborers and heavy equipment operators—to participate in the event. One week prior, we met with the kids and prepped them, providing an overview and other basic information designed to help them to participate actively and receive maximum benefit from the presentations.
The event was just one step in the direction of our goal to create awareness, inspire interest and open up apprenticeship opportunities for Mooseheart kids. Between ICC and the national network of Moose Fraternity members, sponsorship in an apprenticeship program is easily within reach.
