NATIONAL MASONRY INSTRUCTORS ASSOCIATION 2021 Update

The National Masonry Instructors Association completed its 32nd annual summer conference July 10th-14th 2021 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.  It was great for everyone to get back together again in person after missing the 2020 summer conference, due to Covid-19. Covid was a very challenging time for all of us trying to teach virtually as many of us had to do, but we rose to the challenge.

As we started the 2020-2021 school year, we started networking with our fellow instructors around the country on how they were managing to instruct class along with the hands-on training of their students. Most were just virtual with very few doing hands-on training. Some started hybrid teaching when their school district allowed, several teachers went back to a regular school day, and all teachers had a very tight safety protocol to follow.

There was one instructor who had taken tools and materials to all his student’s homes. Instructions were given in virtual classroom sessions with the projects to be built. Reviewing the blueprint of the project and answering any questions or concerns about it. The students had to have their cameras on during the building of the project at the specific time they would be in class so the instructor could watch their progress as they built it. He would go to their homes then go to their home to grade the project. That’s dedication!  I am sure there are many more stories like this that we have not heard. The biggest challenge was following each school district’s rules and regulations on Covid-19.  We all agreed that we hope we never have to go thru this again.

On moving forward, as I write this, we all should be back in the classrooms starting the 2021-2022 school year with no or little restrictions.

The conference started Monday morning July 11th with Erin Smith from Columbia Southern University. CSU is an all-online university with an OSHA certification program. Andy Green from Jag-Clamp followed with an update on new and exciting things happening with Jag-Clamp. Steve Bell from Quikrete, explained the applications of the different types of mortar. Followed by a demonstration on moist sand versus dry sand. 

Jeff Buczkiewicz, President of the Mason Contractors Association of America let us know what was currently happening at MCAA. What MCAA is working on with NMIA on growing our organization and encouraging more instructors to join us. Having webinars for instructors thru out the year, growing our instructor resource page, and having a quarterly newsletter. Instructors that join NMIA will also become an instructor members of MCAA, with the details still being worked out. 

This will open doors for not only the instructors but their students in their apprenticeship training. He also explained the new computer scoring that was developed by MCAA for all competitions. It was introduced at the World of Concrete in January 2020 for the Masonry Skills Challenge. They have done some fine-tuning, and it was used for the 2021 North Carolina Masonry Contractors Association (NCMCA) annual apprenticeship competition, 2021 Masonry Skills Challenge, and virtual SkillsUSA competition. 

Scoring methods were also tweaked for the Fastest Trowel on the Block and the Bricklayer 500 competitions. MCAA and NMIA are working closely to create a judge’s certification. This will benefit all programs as you will be able to get certified judges for your competitions. This will be open to all instructors as well as industry partners. 

This was followed by Ryan Shaver whose presentation was on how to judge a project. It covers in detail all grading criteria.  NCMCA created a 20-minute video that can be viewed at the following link, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5D1dsX6g-w  This can be applied to any project. Please watch this with your students. 

Dana Martini from Superior Clay Products updated us on how their industry is trying to keep up with demand. Dana is also an expert on Rumford fireplaces. He will come to your training center with materials and demonstrate the proper way to build a Rumford fireplace. You get to keep the materials he brings for your instruction, this is a great way for students to hear from an industry expert. You can contact him at Dana@superiorclay.com .

Al Herndon, from the Florida Masonry Apprentice Education Foundation, spoke on how the foundation is working with the Florida prison system on training inmates to prepare them for a job after they have served their time.

They also were successful with having a competition between the prisons with public officials being present.  Needless to say, the officials were very impressed.  

Day one ended with an instructor round table. Topics discussed were National Center for Construction and Education and Research (NCCER), virtual teaching, and recruitment. 

Day two started with a tour of Atalaya Castle in the Sand. This is an all-masonry structure built in the years 1931-33 by Archer Huntington from New York City for his family’s winter residence.  This is run by the state of South Carolina and is a National Landmark. No one knows how many bricks are in the structure, but we discussed between us at least a couple hundred thousand. 

The morning concluded with a visit to Adams Oldcastle with Ryan Shaver demonstrating judging a project.  This project was the same one that they used in the NCMCA presentation. Two of our local NMIA members Calvin Cade and Terry Cox built the project for this demonstration for today. Ryan went step by step on each category and marking the project as I showed everyone how to score/enter this computer-generated score on my smartphone. This will be the same criteria used as we start certifying judges in the coming year. 

Tuesday evening was our annual awards banquet. Greetings were given by Vice President Jimmy Brown. Our guest speaker for the evening was Mr. Jerry Painter. Jerry spoke on honor and just doing the right thing as we work to instill this in every one of our students. The night was capped off by our Hall of Fame instructor inductees. Calvin Cade and Marvin Ford. Calvin Cade taught for a total of 34 years, with the last 20 years at Lake City High School in Florence County, South Carolina.  Calvin is also the inventor of the Plumb Device.  Marvin Ford taught at Fairfield High Preparatory School for 32-1/2 years. 

A special Ambassador Award was given to Steven Fechino for his untiring work and dedication to providing expert training to instructors and students. Promoting the NMIA with Mortar Net Solutions Apprentice Scholarship program in which there were 30 scholarships given this year which include tool bags full of tools and a monetary donation worth $1,600.00. Mortar Net Solutions, Steven Fechino, and Greg Skyta are already planning on presenting 40 scholarships for the upcoming 2021-2022 school year. 

Wednesday morning Matt Helms from South Carolina 811 presented the importance of marking utilities before you dig. This is something every instructor needs to add to their lesson plans. Joe Romesburg from Bon Tool followed with a presentation on all the types of striking tools and the mortar joint they create.  Masonry Mortar Joints and the Tools to Create Them. You can watch this on MCAA On-Demand Webinars. This is a great way to introduce your students to the many types of striking tools.   

I spoke about becoming an OSHA 10 & OSHA 30 training instructor and how this can give your students an advantage when entering the workforce. We were informed that in certain states that teaching the NCCER Core Basic Safety, the students meet the requirements for their OSHA 10 card, check with your local jurisdiction to see if this applies.  Steve Fechino spoke on behalf of Kapro Tools and the support that they give to the Mortar Net Solutions Apprentice Scholarship program and the masonry industry. Kapro offers special pricing for schools on levels and lasers. 

We wrapped up the conference with an instructor recap questions and answers session. The 2022 conference location has not been determined at this time, but the dates have been. July 10th — 13th 2022. So, keep your calendars open. We would like to thank everyone who attended this year’s conference. If you have any questions, concerns or would like to present for next year’s conference, please contact me. choover@aacps.org