Nottingham Construction Technology Students Receive Onondaga County Lead Certification

“Now, nice and gently, you’ll make an ‘I’ on the door,” EPA Lead Risk Assessor Daryl Heffron told a group of Nottingham students as they taped off a door, now covered in plastic, in the SCSD’s Professional Development Center. “Then, you’re going to make a cut right on the line so it makes a flap.”
 
These Nottingham students, enrolled in their school’s Construction Technology Career and Technical Education (CTE) program, recently had the opportunity to work with Mr. Heffron to earn the Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting certification. Earning the certification opens them up to opportunities for employment with Onondaga County – which hires contractors to help solve lead-related issues in local housing. The County has recently encountered difficulty in finding certified workers to hire, so our CTE students – who already have an interest in the field of construction – seemed a logical fit.
 
“Not every kid is built for college,” Onondaga County Community Development Project Coordinator Ed Donohue said. “We’ve got to remove that stigma. Tradespeople can make $100 an hour! These students are using their talents in a different way, but their potential is the same. Even if they don’t end up going into construction, if they have a home one day, they’re still a step ahead in identifying hazards and keeping their families safe. They can still help raise awareness of lead issues and other hazards.”
 
Senior Keiasia Tyrell Hines said she already sees her new knowledge benefitting her family.
 
“We learned about lead contamination,” Keiasia explained. “First, we’d want to turn off the HVAC system or cover all the vents in a space – but we couldn’t do that in our training. Then, we’d want to seal off all the windows and doors to help control the spread of dust and other particles. This has been really nice, because my family is getting ready to buy a house. This has raised my awareness of what to look for in a home – what to look for when it comes to identifying lead, and knowing how it should be treated. While I plan to pursue a career in art, I don’t plan to attend college right away so I think it will be nice to be able to get a job in the trades in the meantime. These experiences will 100% help me!”
 
Construction Technology Instructor Jim Mcginty said that is his hope: that these special learning experiences provided through his CTE program can ultimately help enhance his students’ life experiences.
 
“It was a great opportunity for our students to get out of school and be in a professional environment where they were treated like young professionals,” he said. “The kids really stepped up and did a great job!”
 
Thirteen students in the Construction Technology program ended up earning their Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting certification – opening up new career opportunities. Congratulations to these #SCSDCareerReady scholars!