Outreach Outlook: Building Tomorrow’s Masonry Workforce

Words: Conner Birdsong, Robert Melgaard

As the Region 2 Director for Youth Outreach and Education at the Mason Contractors Association of America (MCAA), my focus centers on strengthening our industry’s future by investing in education, mentorship, and strategic workforce initiatives. The vitality of masonry depends on proactively addressing the challenges we face today—particularly the urgent need to attract, train, and support the next generation of skilled masons and masonry instructors.

One of the most impactful changes comes from the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER). Beginning this June, NCCER’s Level 1 Masonry curriculum will integrate Core Curriculum directly into Level 1 Masonry training. This significant modification simplifies the training pathway, enabling new masonry students to learn foundational skills alongside essential masonry competencies right from the start. Previously, the Core Curriculum—a prerequisite for many trade certifications—stood separate, requiring additional classroom hours before diving into masonry-specific instruction. Now, incorporating these core skills, such as construction math, basic safety, hand and power tools, blueprint reading, and communication directly into masonry courses makes our training more streamlined and accessible. This change not only accelerates student engagement but also supports quicker integration of job-ready skills, greatly benefiting both students and the industry as a whole.

While curricular enhancements are vital, recruiting skilled instructors to deliver this training remains equally crucial. According to recent industry projections, an astonishing 41% of the construction workforce is set to retire by 2031. This figure underscores an urgent need—not just for new masons, but for educators who will shape and mentor them. The reality of an aging workforce presents challenges, certainly, but it also offers a unique opportunity. Skilled masons nearing retirement possess decades of invaluable experience and industry knowledge, making them ideal candidates to transition from fieldwork into instructor roles. Leveraging their expertise to inspire and instruct the next generation ensures the preservation of critical trade skills and techniques.

Recognizing this dual opportunity and challenge, instructor recruitment remains among my highest priorities. Over the past several months, the MCAA has actively participated in numerous career fairs and educational expos across Region 2, successfully reaching more than 3,000 high-school-aged students. At each event, we highlighted masonry’s strengths: excellent pay, rewarding hands-on careers, tangible results, and exceptional job security.

Yet, amidst this outreach, we’ve consistently emphasized another vital career path—the instructor role. Many skilled workers remain unaware that teaching is a viable, valuable next step, and it’s our responsibility to bring clarity to this pathway. Recruiting instructors involves more than simply hiring educators. It requires intentional mentoring and support, ensuring new instructors feel fully equipped and deeply connected to the masonry community. Our instructor recruitment and mentoring initiative seeks precisely this: fostering an environment where seasoned masonry professionals can comfortably and effectively transition into teaching roles. This mentoring program pairs new instructors with veteran educators and industry experts, providing a supportive network that enhances classroom success, boosts confidence, and helps reduce turnover. New instructors receive structured guidance on instructional best practices, classroom management, and effective strategies for engaging students, ensuring a positive experience for both teacher and learner.

To further streamline and bolster our efforts, the MCAA is establishing an instructor database—a central repository capturing essential details of current instructors, including their qualifications, expertise, and availability. This database will serve multiple purposes: it will help training centers, schools, and programs quickly identify suitable instructor candidates, and it will provide critical insight into instructor distribution and retention. By better understanding the landscape of our educator workforce, we can strategically focus recruitment and mentoring resources in regions and programs where they’re most needed.

It’s no exaggeration to say that effective instructor recruitment and retention will define the future of masonry. With significant retirements looming, our industry stands at a pivotal crossroads: we can either face a labor shortage or proactively foster a thriving, sustainable workforce. Encouraging retiring masons to consider classroom careers accomplishes two vital objectives simultaneously—addressing both instructional shortages and student enrollment growth. The experienced mason, now instructor, becomes the bridge connecting industry wisdom with youthful enthusiasm and fresh talent.

To this end, I urge all MCAA members and industry leaders to consider their networks, identifying and encouraging skilled masons approaching retirement to explore instructor roles. Our message is clear: your expertise is valuable, and teaching offers a rewarding, meaningful way to ensure your legacy continues. Our industry thrives only when knowledge, skills, and passion are passed forward, generation to generation.

As we celebrate NCCER’s meaningful curriculum adjustments, actively expand our instructor recruitment and mentorship programs, and leverage our extensive youth outreach, we position masonry as not merely a viable career option but a vibrant community of skill, craft, and pride. The momentum is strong. With focused dedication to nurturing talent—both in young masons and new instructors—we can confidently build a resilient, skilled masonry workforce for decades to come. The opportunities ahead are tremendous; the time to act is now.

Let us continue to work collaboratively, invest generously, and guide passionately, ensuring our masonry industry’s future remains as robust as the structures we proudly create.

Outreach Outlook: Building Tomorrow’s Masonry Workforce

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