South Alabama Home Building Academy to launch tuition-free trades cohort Jan. 8, presenters say

Robert Collins, president of the Home Builders Association in the South Alabama Home Building Academy, told council members the academy will launch its first tuition-free cohort on Jan. 8 that will run eight weeks with classes two nights a week from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Collins said the program is modeled on a Huntsville blueprint that has graduated more than 700 students in five years and will begin locally with five trade-specific tracks — HVAC, electrical, carpentry, plumbing and roofing — with the option to add trades such as masonry and concrete as needs arise. "Our first class is gonna be in January, January 8, and they are 8 week classes, 2 nights a week from 05:30 to 08:30," Collins said.

The academy will be tuition-free for participants, Collins said, with eligibility requiring a minimum age of 17, legal authorization to work in the United States and a drug test. The curriculum will include two worksite-safety classes, nine basic-skills sessions (including power-tool and measuring instruction) and five trade-specific classes; students begin narrowing to a trade after roughly five classes.

Collins described an advanced plumbing apprenticeship track that involves a nine-month classroom component and, combined with one year working under a master plumber, shortens the state licensing experience requirement. He also said graduates typically see entry-level wages of about $16 an hour. "This training, basically saves about 9 months of on the job training," Collins said, and the academy will seek to connect graduates with employers through a job fair at the end of each cohort.

Speakers cited demographic and outcome figures from the model program: Collins said roughly 37.8% of students were white and 58.3% nonwhite, about 25% female, about 70% of graduates enter construction, and retention among those who enter the field was reported at roughly 90–95%.

Collins said the program will provide each student with a basic set of hand tools and host employer interviews to help place graduates. He pointed to local labor demand linked to Airbus and incoming submarine contracts at the port as factors driving the need for more skilled tradespeople and said the academy would also support housing maintenance needs in the area.

Collins listed potential community partners including schools, Big Brothers Big Sisters and Boys & Girls Club and said the academy is exploring targeted outreach for at-risk teens in partnership with an organization named Strickland; he emphasized those plans are not finalized. He also described the South Alabama academy as part of a broader Alabama Home Building Academy network with sites in Huntsville (and a Madison satellite) and planned expansions in Birmingham, Montgomery and county-level partners.

John Thomas, owner of TCM Remodelers, told the council his 43 years in construction left him convinced the biggest problem for contractors is a shortage of skilled workers. "The biggest problem is having people to do it," Thomas said, urging support for efforts that introduce younger students to trade careers.

No formal vote or motion was recorded during the presentation; presenters indicated council members would have an opportunity to ask questions and that administration would also address the item later in the meeting.