Students from the Regional Career and Technical Center at Coventry High School will participate on Thursday at the RI Department of Transportation's 13th Annual Construction Career Days.
Construction Career Days will be held on from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, April 24 and Thursday, April 25, at RIDOT's Midstate Maintenance Facility, located at 2400 New London Tpke. in East Greenwich. The Rhode Island Dept. of Transportation (RIDOT) has once again teamed up with the Federal Highway Administration and the URI Transportation Center (URITC) to host the two-day event that provides high school students hands-on training in transportation trades.
Approximately 1,600 students from more than 30 technical and high schools from Block Island to Woonsocket are expected to attend. These students represent the pool of workers from which the construction industry will recruit its workforce. Annually, there is a national need to fill 250,000 job openings in the construction industry.
For the fourth year in row, the event will feature a bridge building competition sponsored by the URITC, RI Consulting Engineers (RICE) and RIDOT. Prior to the event, local schools were encouraged to participate by working as a team to design and build a bridge out of balsa wood. At the event, the bridges will be tested for strength and judged by members of RICE. Trophies will be awarded for first, second and third place based on the amount of weight held and the cost of construction.
At last year's event, 15 students from the Regional Career and Technical Center, accompanied by Carpentry instructor Scott Leavitt, used spruce and other materials from Coventry Lumber, to build a small shed in just over two hours. Following the project, several students voiced their gratitude for the opportunity to take part in RIDOT's event.
“I’ve enjoyed coming here the last two years and I think I might want to get into an apprenticeship,” said senior Matt Greenwood. “I might like to be a private contractor.”
The event will also will feature a truck simulator whose console has wrap-around screens and the same steering wheel, pedals and transmission shifter found in large trucks. The simulator is programmed so the students can “drive” a variety of trucks such as snowplows, box trucks, fire trucks and city buses.
Students will also be able to operate a wide range of construction equipment such as backhoes, excavators, pavers and bucket trucks. Inside the Midstate facility, there will be a variety of booths and tables to showcase welding, plumbing, electrical, landscaping and other disciplines.
Representatives from colleges and universities, as well as municipalities and the construction and engineering sector, will be in attendance, also.
See the attached list to learn which RI schools are participating in Construction Career Days and on which day.