each spring. The CEFGA Expo is just one portion of the entire CEFGA Skills USA Event, which is an opportunity for trades to engage with, and educate students in the state of Georgia about the oppor- tunities within the trades. The Skills USA competition tests allows area students to compete in the trade of their choice. Up until a few years ago, tile wasn’t part of the cur- riculum, but Owen, working with the SkillsUSA state and national reps – and garnering industry sup- port – finally got the green light to have a tile competition in the 2017 Georgia SkillsUSA event. Owen then reached out to fel- low Georgia-based NTCA Five-Star contractor Woody Sanders of DW Sanders Tile & Stone Contracting, Inc., CTEF’s Scott Carothers, and NTCA’s Becky Serbin, knowing those individuals would be critical in bringing this goal to fruition. After initially competing in 2017, Martin Sanchez of Griffin High School went on to win the top tile prize in the 2018 SkillsUSA competition. And it turned out that he won something much more – a new job at C.C. Owen and an opportunity to par- ticipate in the company’s five-year apprenticeship program, which uti- lizes the NTCA University online curriculum, and is approved by the Georgia Department of Labor. Sanchez now has an opportunity to learn a trade – while he earns a living. Owen’s company sponsors Griffin High School, providing tools and materials to give students the opportunity to do some hands- on tile work. Owen had his eye on Sanchez before he even gradu- ated. That’s because he sits on the advisory boards of several area high schools and has developed relationships with construction teachers – relationships that help give him first dibs on promising grads. “We meet once a quarter to let teachers know new trends and what they need to be focusing on, TRAINING & EDUCATION –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Martin Sanchez (l.) works on his module during the SkillsUSA compe- tition with fellow students. 64 TileLetter | July 2019