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Registered Apprenticeship Program Constructs Talent Pipeline
The Northwest Water Facility isn’t the only project Wichita Water Partners is collaborating to construct in Wichita. The team is also collaborating to construct a stronger talent pipeline.
“There’s really a shortage of labor and it’s getting worse,” said Josh Cindrell with Alberici Constructors. “Although the labor shortage exists, the opportunity to go forward in the construction industry is huge.”
As part of its commitment to growing workforce opportunities in Wichita, Wichita Water Partners, a joint venture of Alberici Constructors and Burns & McDonnell, is covering tuition for a minimum of five students to enroll in WSU Tech’s Registered Apprenticeship in Construction Science program for the upcoming fall 2021 cohort. The apprentices will earn a competitive wage while working with a local construction industry employer under the direction of a mentor. They will also participate in classroom learning that can lead to achievement of certifications at WSU Tech.
“We would like to see this model continue to progress,” Cindrell said.
Wichita Water Partners presented an update on the apprenticeship program as part of a project overview and site tour for members of the Wichita City Council. Several apprentices were onsite and briefly shared their experience with the program.
Thomas Rollins, who is a laborer with CAS Constructors, said the first day on the jobsite, he recognized he had an opportunity to build a career in the field. The experience has already proven to be more valuable to helping him provide for his family compared with the warehouse position he held before applying.
Eric Brown, who graduated high school this spring, described his experience as an apprentice with Dondlinger Construction as nerve-racking, yet fun.
“It’s nerve -racking because, since I’m so new to this [field], I’m always worried about messing something up, but fun because the workdays are so unpredictable, and the people really help you out to make sure everything is okay,” he said.
Brown is among laborers responsible for valve work and installation— tasks that are typically performed once every 36 years.
“It feels good to know that the work I’m doing now will impact future generations,” Brown said.
Learning new things is what attracted Fernando Rueda to the apprenticeship program. Rueda is working as an apprentice for Wildcat Construction.
“This is a way to move forward and do your best to be the best you can be,” Rueda said.
For Cedric Rosales, the apprenticeship offers a way to get more experience in an industry he fell in love with as a sophomore at Dodge City High School where he built houses as part of his coursework.
“Seeing it all come together was really satisfying” Rosales said, adding that his hope for himself as an apprentice is to gain the knowledge needed to advance into management positions in the field.
Arianna Clingerman, an intern with Decker Electric, was unable to attend the presentation due to working on a job site in southwest Kansas. But Jason Seiwert, of Decker shared that Clingerman was working three jobs when they interviewed her. Seeing her commitment, they waited on her to complete a role with Wichita Public Schools before beginning her apprenticeship one month ago.
“Literally, the next day she started with us and now this is her only job because she is that motivated,” Seiwert said, adding that he, too, was an apprentice who was able to rise from the field to an executive position with Decker in a career that has spanned 25 years in the electrical industry.
WSU Tech’s Leah Roeder, Assistant Director, Industry and Workforce Collaboration, helped to further underscore the significance of apprenticeships.
“Apprenticeships are not only a way for companies to establish and enhance their own talent pipelines,” she said, “they are also a way to empower the workforce to explore and be educated on career pathways made transparent by mentors as they learn highly needed skills and competencies.”
For more information about the Apprenticeship program, please visit: https://wichitawaterworks.com/apprenticeshipprogram/