Project Skill Build

Project Skill Build has no news yet.

1. What issue will your venture address?

PSB will address New Orleans’ (NOLA) need to strengthen their construction workforce to rebuild post-Katrina. According to the Greater New Orleans Community Data Center (GNOCDC), 65,888 blighted properties or empty lots remain throughout NOLA. Additionally, GNOCDC reports that 78% of existing homes pre-Katrina in the Lower Ninth Ward are uninhabitable or decimated. The same report details NOLA’s construction employment decrease from 5,498 in 2007 to 4,771 in 2008. Katrina’s destruction paired with a crippled workforce has created a massive homeless population. Conservative estimates report that at least 11,000 people remain homeless in NOLA – almost double the 6,500 homeless individuals pre-Katrina.

2. Why are YOU pursuing this specific issue?

I was drawn to NOLA’s plight after watching Katrina’s aftermath and the Federal Government’s shortcomings unfold before my eyes. In keeping up with news about the post-Katrina Gulf Coast, I understood the increasing need for aid in the region. Moreover, I sensed a growing national apathy about NOLA that no one talked about, but that troubled me nonetheless. During a conversation with my best friend, we unearthed a mutual desire to funnel our time and efforts into making a direct and powerful impact on revitalization in the region. It was that late-night conversation in January 2008 that sparked PSB’s creation.

3. How will your venture solve this problem?

PSB will hasten rebuilding efforts in NOLA by utilizing skilled builders around the country as a tool of community empowerment. PSB teaches construction skills to nonviolent offenders, unemployed, and/or homeless individuals via classroom instruction and volunteerism. The teaching of skills will revamp a workforce in NOLA by equipping residents with the skills necessary to rebuild their communities. PSB creates future teachers by transferring construction skills from one population to another. After having been instituted with the community, PSB will provide the region with a trusted pipeline for skilled workers. Graduates will gain employability skills and ownership of the city’s reconstruction.