For years now, we’ve been hearing about the shrinking numbers of skilled craftsmen and construction superintendents as many age out of the workforce and younger folks aren’t coming in the replace them. Sometimes hard problems require creative solutions, and I’m glad to share what I think is a dynamic and viable model.
Stewart/Perry is proud to be a small part of a program that offers low-income students a debt-free path to career in the trades, restores housing in underserved neighborhoods and creates a sustainable path to home ownership. BuildUp Birmingham is a private school started in 2018 located in the Ensley neighborhood giving local students the tools they need for a stable career with a focus on trade education. The goal is to expose these students to a career path they might not have found otherwise and create leaders who foster change from the ground up. New this year, BuildUp is expanding to provide the model to the high school at Ellwood Christian Academy in Selma, AL.
Teachers guide students through all stages of construction, from reading plans to the actual construction process. Students graduate with a traditional high school diploma, and while attending BuildUp, many also utilize dual-enrollment options for college coursework, industry credentials or an associate degree. After graduation, students have the opportunity acquire ownership of an asset like a car or a share of a company. Another option, maybe my favorite, is to purchase a home through the school’s low-interest home loan program. These are homes students have worked to restore in their own community. To qualify, they must have completed 2 years of full-time work and make at least $40,000 a year. To date, 42 students have graduated, and they have rehabilitated more than 30 homes.
Equity and long-term economic mobility are important pillars of BuildUp, and this model mentors leaders so they can reinvest in their own neighborhoods. We are sponsoring two paid Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing internships for the 2025-26 school year.
