The Next Generation: The Impact of Tampa Construction Career Days
BY CODY SMITH THE WYMAN COMPANY
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PHOTOS BY CODY SMITH
ooking out at the Hillsborough County Fairgrounds, a once-empty field now was filled with construction vehicles and equipment as far as the eye could see: bulldozers, front loaders, backhoes, excavators, graders and even lifts. Did a massive construction project kick off at these fairgrounds? No. This was Tampa Construction Career Days. And behind the wheels of these vehicles? High school students. The Tampa Construction Career Days event, held this year on Feb. 20, is one of five annual Construction Career Days (CCD) events in Florida (others are held in Central Florida, South Florida, Northeast Florida and Northwest Florida, and the program is currently on hold because of COVID-19 and school suspension). Every year, big players in Florida construction come together to organize the event to give high school students a field trip into their world. This year’s Tampa event hosted learning labs, equipment and vehicle demonstrations and networking opportunities with dozens of companies. “We originally realized there’s a need to connect adults interested in full-time work to making a career out of road and bridge construction,” said Jill Cappadoro, Associate Vice President of Quest Corporation of America and a member of the Tampa Construction Career Days Steering Committee. “We also realized we needed to start to create that pathway for students whom we really need to entice for the careers available,” Cappadoro said. CCD works with both construction companies and local school administration to coWWW.FTBA.COM
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