Masonry Magazine April 1997 Page. 15
tional Workshops
ning Results
Above: The five panelists that participated in the Workforce Program where, left-to-right, Bob Ahlers, Rhino Masonry, Casey Schreur, Masonry Instructor, John Rebbs, Vice Principal, Metro Tech H.S., Ann Sullivan, Rocky Mountain Masonry Institute and Bill Kjortien, Southerm Brick Insitute
Left: Apprentices in the Arizona Mason Contractors Assoc. Apprenticeship program during their class.
I think once you actually see a working example of what you are trying to achieve, it motivates you and makes the goal much more attainable. It also makes you preserve through the more frustrating parts of administrating a training program", continued Kitzinger because you know that the end result is worth the effort". Anytime you have participants walk away from a program with a renewed or increased conviction for what they are doing, you have a successful program summarized Kitzinger. The wall bracing workshop also had long term impact on the industry. Considered by mason contractors to be an industry wide problem, the three member panel laid the groundwork for an MCAA driven effort for industry standards. Mark Hogan, NCMA, Gregg Borchelt, BIA and Joe O'Connor presented material covering, among other items, the dynamics of wall bracing, what OSHA looks for and libalities the contractor could face. Based on the audience response to the topic, it became apparent that the industry needs to take some action. In fact, the need for an industry generate, definitive guide was expressed.
The MCAA has agreed to take the lead on this matter. According to Executive Director Mike Adelizzi, "we are in the process of setting up a industry-wide task force to address this issue." We will keep the industry aware of the progress of this effort.
is critical for the speakers. It helps them decide on numbers of handouts, type of visuals and even the methods of presenting the workshop. Though some EXPO participants balked at having to choose their workshops when they registered, it is probably a procedure that is here to stay.
The speakers that were at EXPO this year were also a blend of old and new. Charles Vander Kooi and Al Roach are two speakers that are always well received at EXPO. This year each of these speakers brought two new programs with them. Vander Kooi's programs included a seminar specifically covering overhead and a new workshop entitled, "Seven Things You Need to Know to Build Better Relationships with People". Roach presented a seminar addressing the issue of "Why Good Employees Leave" and a workshop on Effective Communication. In each case these programs where filled to capacity.
Overall the MCAA EXPO workshops were a blend of technical topics and management issues. Tom LaJaune, John Chrysler, Carolyn Searls and Matt Stevens were speakers that were new to the MCAA workshop schedule. They covered productivity, mortar and grout, restoration, and workers compensation issues. The panel on wall bracing run by Mark Hogan, Gregg Borchelt and Joe O'Connor was well attended and is having some long term effects as did the workshop on mason training (see related article). Finally, Mario Catani's presentation on the 530 Code was well received.
One drawback to scheduling programs on three separate mornings was that it was more difficult to coordinate speakers availability and topics. Due to scheduling limitations many of the technical topics were held on the same morning making it difficult, if not impossible to hear more than one of these programs.
According to Education Director Connie Kitzinger, the MCAA is investigating the possibility of having the programs taped. This would allow people to purchase audio recordings of the programs they missed. The drawback with this arrangement is that the listener loses the benefit of any slides or other visual information that the speaker utilized in the live presentation.
Believe it or not the staff is already at work on programs for Charlotte. Any comments or suggestions for the MCAA educational programs should be directed to Connie Kitzinger at 630-782-6767.
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