HBI Announces New Partnership with YouthBuild USA

The Home Builders Institute (HBI) announced a new partnership with YouthBuild USA to provide nearly 200 U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) YouthBuild grantees with access to education resources and training for construction trade skills.

HBI and YouthBuild USA have partnered since 2003 to deliver quality career and technical education to students in YouthBuild's 46-state network of urban and rural programs. In the last decade, nearly 800 participants have earned HBI training certificates from YouthBuild programs.

This latest partnership seeks to strengthen the pipeline of those offerings, which will include:

• YouthBuild USA and HBI-conducted trainings of YouthBuild educators/staff
• Pre-Apprenticeship Certificate Training (PACT)-curriculum offerings
• Skilled trade certifications for program graduates

"Our longstanding partnership with HBI provides an incredible edge for YouthBuild participants as they prepare to enter the building trades workforce," said John Valverde, president and CEO of YouthBuild USA. "We are so grateful for HBI's collaboration, especially during this time of upheaval, as we equip even more young people with the training and certifications they need to skillfully begin their careers."

YouthBuild Louisville is a YouthBuild USA affiliate and DOL YouthBuild grantee that participated in the summer 2020 DOL YouthBuild virtual HBI PACT certification training in July. According to DeMarcus Keene, YouthBuild Louisville's construction manager, even though he's worked on planning crews and trained students in the past, learning about new work methods, procedures and training stations, and getting to learn in a group atmosphere helped alleviate the pressure of creating and applying lesson-planning.

"The HBI training really helped me with my confidence and knowledge to go back to my team with a definite plan of standardized instruction to apply at YouthBuild Louisville," said Keene. "This will work hand-in-hand with efforts to see our students certified with construction skills and hired within the building profession with the help of the employability skills and other resources we offer."

"HBI is proud to be able to work with YouthBuild and their participants, who will provide a workforce to a housing industry currently in need of more than 200,000 skilled trades workers," said HBI President and CEO Ed Brady.

Learn more about HBI and YouthBuild USA.