Michigan trade schools report rapid growth, new campus plans to meet construction labor shortage

Chairwoman Jenkins Arnaud convened the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor and Economic Opportunity hearing where leaders of two industry-founded trade schools described rapid enrollment growth and new facilities aimed at addressing Michigan's construction labor shortage.

Keith Ledbetter, president and CEO of the Southeast Michigan Construction Academy (SEMCA), told the committee the nonprofit grew from the low hundreds of students to about 750 across five locations and said the organization will invest in a new 100,000-square-foot training center in Sterling Heights. "I'm proud to report that this morning ... our board chair is signing paperwork to purchase a new 100,000 square foot training center in Sterling Heights with 400 parking spaces," Ledbetter said.

The nut of the presentations was that industry-led, hands-on programs are producing job-ready workers and strong employer partnerships. "These are pipelines to meaningful high wage careers," Deanna Morley,…