LAKEWOOD, N.J. – Nov. 2, 2018 – PRLog — Members of the Shore Builders Association’s Young Professionals committee had the opportunity recently to meet and mentor local students from Trenton Central High School (TCHS) who are part of the Princeton ARC Prep Program, a partnership between TCHS and Princeton University. This partnership creates an architectural design experience that seeks to lay a strong foundation for students interested in architecture, construction, and engineering. In addition to SBACNJ members, New Jersey Builder’s Association President, Principal of Sharbell Development Corporation, and ARC Program supporter, Tom Troy led the group on a site tour of his under-construction community, Montage at Hamilton. Students toured the job site and learned about career paths in the building industry from Young Professionals committee members Adam Lepore, Chris Cowan, Grant Lucking, Frank Swol, and Matt Bella, who were on hand to meet and mentor the students.

According to Katie Zaeh, Architectural Design Fellow from Princeton University’s School of Architecture, who is the instructor for the ARC Program, “The students got a wonderful overview of the construction process and have a better understanding of just how much collaboration is involved. It will be really helpful in the months ahead to be able to reference the things they saw and heard in person on this trip. They also had fun – on the bus ride home, they were already excitedly talking about visiting in the spring.” This mentoring event and site tour was a direct result of NJBA President Tom Troy’s outreach initiative to introduce more students to opportunities in the building industry in New Jersey. These efforts are aligned with the National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) recognition that there are not enough young professionals entering the work force in the industry. Partnering with schools, vocational education facilities, and programs like Princeton ARC provides the association with a means to introduce future leaders of the industry to the career opportunities they can achieve in building and construction.

Shore Builders Association of Central New Jersey, Inc. (SBACNJ) is a professional trade association covering Monmouth, Ocean, Mercer and Middlesex counties comprised of builders, developers, subcontractors, suppliers, and service-oriented businesses. SBACNJ is a chartered chapter of both the NJBA and the NAHB. Upon joining the SBACNJ (local association), companies and individuals automatically become a member of the NJBA (state association) and NAHB (national association). For more information on SBACNJ, please visit SBACNJ’s website www.shorebuilders.org or contact the office at 732-364-2828.