Through the Charlotte DeSoto Building Industry Association (CDBIA), Florida students are exploring the skilled trades by showing up on time, wearing company uniforms and shadowing certified professionals on active jobsites.

It’s part of a broader CDBIA effort to promote residential construction to today’s students, especially with many tradespeople retiring and not enough new workers entering the field. Each week, a CDBIA member visits a local middle or high school to talk about opportunities in the industry. Nearly 100 students have completed job shadowing in the last three years as a result.

“They ride with me directly,” said Chris Hege, owner of Elite Hurricane Protection. “I’ll take them to the jobsite. They’ll be there in the morning to see how the day gets going, I’ll explain the products from manufacturing to install, and they learn each process of how the company truly runs.”

BillieJo Decker, co-owner of Decker Plumbing & Drains, tells classrooms and high school sports teams to think about the trades as an alternative to a costly four-year college degree. She highlights Florida’s on-the-job training programs, where people work during the day and attend class at night, and the growing need for new workers.

Four students have completed job shadowing with her company, and one has been hired directly from it. The days are scheduled around school calendars, often during spring break or holidays. Students arrive with the crew in the morning, are outfitted in the company uniform and shadow a certified professional throughout the day.

“Everyone wants to be a star NFL player, but in case that first goal doesn’t make it, you have to have a backup plan,” Decker said. “And that’s where I think I drew their attention.”

CDBIA Executive Officer Donna Barrett said they’re planning now for high school graduations and how to engage students who don’t plan to attend a four-year college.

“We do this because students are told their whole life that they need to go to college, and I don’t believe you need to for a successful career,” Hege said. “Students need to understand the different options and hear from people who have built a company from scratch and let them know they can have a bright future also.”

Decker said these school visits are key because many students lack guidance, and yet adults often assume they have a plan for their future.

“At that age, they change their mind every month,” she said. “However, once they get to be a junior or senior, the college pressure comes on really heavily: ‘What are you going to do with your life?’ I think it’s really good to have multiple avenues beyond college.”

She said she’s even had students from previous classroom visits who didn’t job shadow with her company reach out later to tell her she influenced them to enter the trades.

“It’s super exciting to see them excited about something that I know can benefit their lives in the future,” she said.