Outreach Outlook: A Year of Momentum and Building Our Future Together

Words: Robert Melgaard

As 2025 draws to a close, it’s a natural time for reflection. This month marks a personal milestone for me, my one-year anniversary as the National Director of Youth Outreach & Education. What an incredible year it has been for the newly established Outreach and Education division of MCAA. In just twelve months, we have laid a strong foundation, built critical momentum, and truly begun to build capacity and connection across the masonry education landscape.

I want to start by extending my deepest gratitude to everyone who rallied for us during the Truist Foundation Inspire Awards live event last month. The tremendous support we received was a powerful and humbling testament to our industry's unity and strength. While we were honored to be finalists for our ReCastED program, which creates pathways for tradespeople to become instructors, the real win was seeing our industry come together to champion the future of our trade. That energy is what propels us forward.

2025 was truly a landmark year for our division. We set out with a clear mission: to support and grow a skilled, passionate, and resilient workforce.

  • We expanded our regional leadership, welcoming Conner Birdsong as Region 2 Director and Jason McCoy as Region 3 Director, giving us dedicated "boots-on-the-ground" support in the Southeast and Midwest.

  • We innovated in the classroom, developing and demoing the new 3D Wall Scanner and Evaluator, a tool designed to provide immediate, data-driven feedback to students.

  • We put instructors at the heart of our mission, developing alternative certification pathways and supporting the updated NCCER curriculum to ensure students are learning the most relevant skills.

This momentum is carrying us straight into 2026. We are incredibly excited for the new year and hope to connect with many of you at the 2026 World of Concrete Convention in January. We invite everyone to visit the MCAA booth, meet our team, and discuss how we can collaborate in the year ahead. These in-person events are vital for recharging, reconnecting, and recommitting to our shared mission.

Thank you, as always, to the educators, contractors, and partners who make this work possible. Your dedication is the bedrock of our success. We are building the future of masonry—together.

Stay connected, stay strong, and I look forward to seeing you in the new year.


About: Outreach Outlook
The Behind-the-Wall Secrets Every Mason Already Knows (But Some Ignore)
March 2026

You’ve been around long enough to know this already: stone doesn’t fail on the face; it fails behind the wall. You can lay the prettiest veneer in the county, but if the prep is junk, that wall’s gonna start telling on you after a couple of winters. Manu

Rob McKay
Technical Talks
Read More
From the Mound to the Mortar: Jon Rauch’s Tall Order in the Masonry Industry
March 2026

In the record books of Major League Baseball, Jon Rauch is a literal giant. At 6 feet, 11 inches, he remains the tallest player to ever step onto a Big League mound. But today, the Olympic Gold Medalist and 11-season MLB veteran isn’t looking for a strike

Robert Melgaard
Industry News
Read More
Case Study: The Scoop
March 2026

Leading UK architecture firm, Corstorphine & Wright, has announced the completion of ‘The Scoop’, a unique concave office building in Southwark, London. The innovative design reuses an existing building and integrates a conical cut-out façade in white gla

Case Study
Read More
Executing Color-Driven Designs Without Compromising Craftsmanship
March 2026

On today’s jobsites, masonry contractors are being asked to do more than install manufactured stone veneer (MSV). They’re being asked to interpret design trends and execute them with precision. Homeowners arrive with curated Pinterest boards. Designers r

Jeff Tew
Technical Talks
Read More
Interested in working with us? Learn about and join the Masonry Alliance Program →