CEFGA Honors 118 Teachers with Construction Workforce Impact Awards

Rodney Presley of Lanier College and Career Academy ranked seventh among 118 winners of the 2021 Construction Workforce Impact Awards. Pictured with Presley are, from left, CEFGA’s Dennis Bradish, Temi Aladegbemi and Ash Mangham.

CEFGA honored 118 teachers in its 2021 Construction Workforce Impact Awards program. The Impact Awards honor educators throughout Georgia with monetary awards for their front-line contributions in preparing students for careers in the skilled trades.

Greg Harrell of Bainbridge High School received the $10,000 first prize as the top Impact Award winner. Award winners are ranked with a quantitative score based on metrics in four key areas: Industry Certification of their Program, Industry Credentialing, Industry Exposure, and Industry Career Path Placements including Work-Based Learning and part-time employment in the construction industry.

Awards ranged from $300 to $10,000, with a total of $254,180 – including $198,000 in state funding – being distributed. The program added a new component in 2021, the Re3CONSTRUCTION Awards, which recognizehigh school and middle school counselors for their role as front-line leaders in career readiness and workforce development. Work Based Learning coordinators will be recognized beginning in 2022.

Delivered in partnership with the Georgia Department of Education, the Impact Awards program is designed to ensure that all students have an equal opportunity to thrive in construction education and careers. The program is part of CEFGA’s “Introducing the Next Generation to the Skilled Trades” initiative supported by The Marcus Foundation, The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation and The Home Depot Foundation.

Harrell, who reported more than twice the number of placements than any other teacher, also was named a K12 Teacher of the Year Award in CEFGA’s Craft Pro Champion Awards program.

“I owe a lot of appreciation to the CEFGA team for getting this grant and rewarding teachers for the job they’re doing,” Harrell said at the Craft Pro Champion Awards Breakfast on July 28. “It means more than you’ll ever know.”

Top 10 Construction Workforce Impact Award Winners