The program has worked to reach into area high schools to help students see the possibilities of about nine different kinds of trade careers, said Douglas Bolton, the president of OVABC, which has 300 member companies. The effort has included scholarship opportunities.
“I truly believe that this is an exciting time and a great opportunity for the Tools Foundation, OVABC, our members and of course the students that we can bring into our industry,” Mick Given, chief executive of Ferguson Construction and chair of the foundation, said in a statement.
Warrenhuffman has served for nearly five years as the economic inclusion manager at Messer Construction, leading that company’s Urban Workforce Development Initiative, an effort help individuals find careers in the industry.
Under Stanley’s leadership, more than 150 people have found employment with dozens of contractors in Cincinnati, Columbus, Louisville and Nashville, a foundation statement said.
“Blessed and fortunate to take on this opportunity,” Warrenhuffman said on the LinkedIn website. “Thank you to those that made this possible. Let’s get to work.”
Warrenhuffman will begin with an area “listening tour” of area high school teachers, counselors, students and principals to think about the program’s next steps, Bolton said in an interview.
“It could be job fairs, it could be a convening, if you will, of all these career and technical education professionals across the industry,” Bolton said. “We’re really whiteboarding what the opportunity might be, and that’s the work Stanley is going to drive.”
There are some 100,000 construction jobs between Dayton and Cincinnati. Probably 10% of them on any given work day are vacant, Bolton said.
“The industry is a major driver of the economy,” Bolton said. “When you look across the landscape, building is going on everywhere.”
A former National Football League wide receiver for the New Orleans Saints, a collegiate player for Campbellsville University in Kentucky and Mount Healthy High School in his hometown of Cincinnati. Warrenhuffman received a bachelor’s degree from Northern Kentucky.
“He has been doing this kind of work specifically for Messer for the last five years,” Bolton said.
OVABC founded the TOOLS program five years ago. It became an independent entity in 2023.
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