ConstructReach, a construction industry workforce development initiative and consultancy, will host an “I built this!” (IBT) event on Oct. 17-18 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the future home of the Inner-City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (ICYOLA), located at 2045 W Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Los Angeles. Each day, more than 100 high school students aged 16-18 years from neighboring school districts are invited to learn more about the construction industry and participate in hands-on activities related to carpentry, fixturing, design and technology, mechanical, and plumbing. Students will also be able to connect with general contractors and other industry professionals to discuss internships, career opportunities, and scholarships.
Paul Robinson, CEO and founder of ConstructReach, conceptualized the “I built this!” initiative to address the workforce shortage by promoting collaboration between the education and construction sectors. IBT events introduce the industry and career opportunities to the next generation, in turn building a diverse and talented pipeline to keep the industry moving forward. Now in its fifth year, ConstructReach’s IBT initiative has been hosted in cities across the country, including Miami, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Minneapolis, St. Louis, Kansas City and Detroit. Through these innovative events and a variety of services offered to its members, ConstructReach aims to transform the construction industry within the next decade.
Industry partners confirmed for the event include Curtom Dunsmuir, International Code Council, Lankford Construction, Genesis Floor Covering, Infinity Drywall Contracting Inc., High Power Electric Inc., Southwest Mountain States Regional Council of Carpenters, South Bay Workforce Investment Board, and Target Corporation. School district partners include Irvine Unified School District, Los Angeles Unified School District, and Culver City Unified School District. ConstructReach has partnered with ICYOLA to host the event at their future headquarters. ICYOLA will be hosting an open-house event in partnership with ConstructReach and Curtom Dunsmuir the day before IBT LA, on Monday, Oct. 16.
“Our mission at ConstructReach is to increase the visibility of the construction industry by educating students about career opportunities, connecting general contractors to interns and innovative internship curriculum, and creating content, experiences, and a ConstructReach Community to expose diverse populations to construction careers,” says Paul Robinson. “Over half of the construction workforce is over the age of 46 and will be retiring. ‘I built this!’ introduces diverse students to construction opportunities to work toward changing those statistics.”