Project SCALE: A Connected & Cumulative Career Pathway in Construction
Please read our Project SCALE whitepaper which provides more details on this program – and a one-page summary of the initiative can be found at this link.
If you have feedback or questions about Project SCALE, please email your thoughts to Ben Gerig at bgerig@coloradosucceeds.org.
Colorado is short more than 40,000 construction workers and industries are increasingly partnering directly with education providers to solve their workforce challenges. Project SCALE brings together 10 years of innovation to create a paid pathway to economic mobility via financial support and facilitation by the construction industry and education sector.
Fully supported by both industry and education, this program increases top-of-the-funnel talent from K12 through postsecondary education and accelerates students’ educational paths and entry into the workforce. The Project SCALE program sets up learners and employers up for success by creating an educational pathway, beginning in high school, that counts completed coursework toward future construction apprenticeship program credits; completed apprenticeship coursework then counts toward 45 of the required 60 associate degree credits; and completed associate degree coursework counts toward bachelor’s degree credits. In this way, the program builds true credential ‘stackability’ into the traditional trade education path culminating in expanded career opportunities for all skilled tradespeople.
This program is an innovative statewide partnership led by Associated General Contractors Construction Education Foundation, Careers in Construction, Colorado Community College System, Weifield Group Contracting, and Colorado Succeeds – and is also supported by more than 25 construction businesses, nonprofits, work sector partnerships and educational institutions.
PROJECT SCALE OUTCOMES [2024 – 2027]
NEW HIGH SCHOOL PARTNERSHIPS:
- 100+ Total High School Partnerships
- 8,000 HBI Certificates
- 1,600 Student Job Placements
- 1 Navigator + .5 Admin for Every 8 Schools
EXPANDING CONSTRUCTION APPRENTICESHIP PARTNERSHIPS:
- 2,600 Students Connected to Jobs or Apprenticeships
- Significant Increase in Diverse Populations’ Enrollment into Apprenticeships Matching State Requirements
- Higher Participant Self-Sufficiency (Earning While Learning)
ACTIVE EMPLOYER PARTNERSHIPS:
- Expanded Student Internships and Employer Pre-Apprenticeships
- 30% of All HBI PACT-Certificate Holding Students Placed into Jobs
- Higher Promotion Rate for Project SCALE Job Placements
NEW POST-SECONDARY PARTNERSHIPS:
- Construction-Specific Associate’s Degree Developed Transition from Apprenticeship to CCCS Associate’s Degree with No Credit Loss
- 75% of CCCS AAS Degree Paid by Industry/Grant via the Apprenticeship Pathway
- Construction Bachelor’s Degree Program Recruits from Project SCALE Apprenticeship Pathway for Higher-Level Education & Jobs
ACHIEVEMENTS TO DATE [AS OF JANUARY, 2024]
- Teaching HBI Construction Curriculum in 62 High Schools (10% of the High Schools in the State of Colorado)
- Since the Start of this Work in 2015,10,726 Individual Students Have Enrolled in the HBI Trade Curriculum in High Schools and 4,741 HBI PACT Certificates of Completion Have Been Issued — with 1,000+ Trackable Students Placed into Industry/Employment
- Cross-Mapped Curriculum from the HBI High School Curriculum into IECRM 4-Year Electrical Apprenticeship and AGC Construction Education Foundation (CEF) 2-Year Carpentry Apprenticeship — to Apply Credit for High School Courses Toward Apprenticeships
- Have Garnered Support from the Largest Apprenticeship in the State (IECRM) to Help Lead Work on This Initiative
- Created a New Construction-Specific Associate’s (AAS) Degree with the Colorado Community College System (CCCS) — Taking All DOL Office of Apprentice-Certified Curriculum from Different Construction Apprenticeships to Count Toward AAS Degree Credit
- Coordinated with the Union MEP Alliance to Align & Promote Career Pathways for High Schools to Connect to Construction Apprenticeships
- Have Received Opportunity Now Colorado Grant Funding to Help Fund the High School Expansion Portion of Project SCALE
