Students receive hands-on training as well as classroom instruction in skilled trades in the Alabama Craft Training program. 

Students from Moody, Ashville, and Pell City High Schools are getting opportunities to train for the future through the Academy of Craft Training program. 

The Academy of Craft Training program began in 2016 as a partnership between the Alabama State Department of Education and local private industry leaders in the Association of Builders and Contractors. Both saw a need for skilled labor. Their mission is to recruit, educate, and guide high school students for educational and employment opportunities in the construction industry. 

The free program offers students training in electrical, plumbing, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), masonry and building construction, and welding. Classes are conducted in a simulated real work environment at the Alabama Workforce Training Center located in Birmingham. The program also insures that students receive basic requirements for certification in safety procedures, Occupational Safety Health Association (OSHA) training, and National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) credentials. 

“We set our students up for success,” Academy of Craft Training Director Linda Poindexter stated. “We are very proud to have 90 percent of seniors getting employed after graduation.” 

When the program started during the 2016-2017 school year, nearly 90 students from 12 school systems throughout the Birmingham metro area enrolled. Seventy students completed the requirements. According to Poindexter, the Academy of Craft Training will be expanding their enrollment to 200 students and 24 schools for the 2017-2018 school year.

“We have reached out to schools that do not have career training or vocational trades,” Poindexter said. “Pell City is a great school for promoting trades and giving their students options.”

The Academy of Craft Training starts recruiting incoming senior students in February, contacting schools, principals, and school counselors about potential enrollees. Students must complete an application, essay, and an interview with industry instructors.  Interviews are conducted in the spring, and students are notified by Spring Break if they have been accepted into the program. 

For the upcoming 2017-2018 school year, over 300 interviews were conducted and 160 students were selected to participate in the program.  Twelve students from Pell City High School, two from Moody High School, and three from Ashville High School have been selected. There are 20 available slots in each trade offered and students may interview for a different trade for additional training. Initially, classes were only offered from 8:30 am-10:30 am, but afternoon classes will be offered for the upcoming school year, accommodating more students. 

“We are the only program in the state that partners with the public school system and private industry to educate and train students,” Poindexter said. “We have gotten a lot of good feedback and support.” 

For more information on the Alabama Academy of Craft Training, visit www.academyofcrafttraining.org.