Sydney Franklin
Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY NETWORK

Behind the construction mesh outlin­ing the base of Cincinnati’s Duke Energy Convention Center, Antwain Colson drills steel rebar into the building’s fu­ture foundation. By 2026, that rebar will be part of the support for the floor-to­-ceiling glass walls bordering the $200 million project.

This is Colson’s highest-profile job af­ter just two years in the construction in­dustry – a career he never imagined but was built for.

Colson, 35, is a 2023 graduate of Easterseals Redwood’s construction training academy, Building Value, an accelerated program for minorities and women to gain access to the industry. He was hired as a labor carpenter at Messer Construc­tion Co. last year, following in the foot­steps of his mother – now his colleague – who also graduated from the program over a decade ago.

“I think I found something that no­body can take away from me,” he said.  “It took me a long time and I had a whole bunch of jobs, but this one right here … I like this one. I now know I can do any­thing I want to do.”

In just a short time at Messer, the Pad­dock Hills resident has gone from sweeping construction debris to working on the exterior of one of the region’s big­gest building projects. He even won Messer’s highest regional award for safe­ty – a badge he wears proudly.

Colson’ s aptitude for construction is part of his personality.  He describes him­self as a fixer who “likes to make things better no matter how long it takes,” he said. This career offers him a tangible way to build on something daily.

But at Building Value where Colson trained, he first learned to appreciate the art of breaking down buildings before he began building upward. The program, which takes trainees to active job sites across the region, teaches skills such as demolition and sustainable deconstruc­tion methods, as well as hardscaping, building landscape features like retain­ing walls and pathways.
The materials salvaged on the sites they work on are resold at the program’s retail outlet in Northside, the proceeds of which are cycled back into Easterseals Redwood.

“From day one, they get thrown into the fire,” said David Daniels, longtime workforce development manager at Building Value. The entire program usually lasts a few months for each trainee and revolves around testing them in the field. Can they handle the weather? The hours? The commute? The work itself?

Colson said his first deconstruction project cemented his desire for this new career.  In his native neighborhood of Avon­dale, he disassembled houses around the Cincinnati Zoo. “It felt good knowing I started from this place and now I have a good job where I’m literally making space,” he said.

Colson went on to demolish homes on the west side of Easterseals Redwood’s campus in Walnut Hills, which made room for the nonprofit’ s recent $30 mil­lion expansion to 100,000 square feet.

To get construction jobs where train­ees can learn, Daniels and his team bid on area projects like any other contrac­tor. They’ve worked for many different regional organizations including The Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. In its 20 years, the Building Value pro­gram has sustainably deconstructed or demolished 475 houses and salvaged 12.7 million pounds of building materials. It’s also trained over 350 people in construction, many of whom work alongside Colson at Messer.

Daniels said this immersion in the field is like a boot camp: “They know im­mediately they’re going to get their hands dirty,” he said. “That’s the secret sauce of Building Value versus any other program out there. They work hard.”

Building Value also offers trainees help with transportation, childcare and other barriers to work. Daniels has even helped people get their driver’s licenses.  Ultimately, though, the program tests how badly they want this career, and whether it’s a good fit. Its apprenticeship program also gives trainees the chance to work for top companies around Cin­cinnati before finding a full-time job.

Easterseals Redwood’s Building Value is also one of many paths burgeoning professionals can take into the field as contractors are doubling down on diver­sifying their workforce.
Its co-op program through Messer, known as the Urban Workforce Develop­ment Initiative, also gives trainees a chance to work for Cincinnati contrac­tors before finding a full-time job.

“Certifications and degrees don’t tell any employer that person is going to get up every day on time, go to work, work hard, have a good attitude and follow di­rections. That’s not tested in a class­room,” he said.  “Employers take on sig­nificantly less risk hiring a graduate be­cause they have experience.”

Construction is a growing job sector. As one of nearly 80,000 people in the Cincinnati area working in construction, Colson is part of a growing job sector.

According to a report by Allied Construction Industries and the University of Cincinnati Economics Center for Research and Consulting, the commercial construction industry alone generated $2.2 billion in earnings and $6.3 billion in sales during 2022.