But how many middle and high school students think of construction when they’re interested in law, accounting, marketing, technology, writing, or design?
Last month, five Webcorians gathered at our LA office to introduce local students to the plethora of career pathways available at a construction firm like Webcor. The event was part of Ketchum YMCA’s Career Camp, a recently launched initiative offering the program’s teen members a chance to tour company offices in downtown LA, learn about different career routes, and gain insights on how to get started.
Sr. Executive Assistant Agueda Zarate initiated our partnership with Ketchum YMCA in 2020, when we began sponsoring their annual Stair Climb (now a Stair Climb/Urban Hike) benefiting their youth, family, and young adult programs.
“Partnering with Ketchum YMCA is a great way to serve a community in which so many LA Webcorians live and work,” Agueda says. “Some Webcorians are Ketchum gym members, and at least one was part of their teen summer program. It’s always a no-brainer to partner with them, especially now that they’re literally across the street from our DTLA office!”
After touring Ketchum YMCA’s teens through our LA office, presenters dove into their professional journeys and current roles at Webcor:
As an ACE Mentor, Manny’s no stranger to connecting with local youth and opening their eyes to opportunities in construction. He kicked off the presentation series with an engaging overview of what a general contractor (GC) does and how they could one day fit into it.
“I wanted to shed some light on our industry for kids who wouldn’t otherwise know what a career in construction can look like,” he says. “I was really hoping to dispel the stereotype that construction is just for burly guys swinging hammers. People from all backgrounds, genders, ethnicities, etc. belong at GCs! And we’re performing all kinds of roles outside of building things, from Marketing to Legal to Accounting to VDC and much, much more.”
His words resonated deeply with the teens, who weren’t shy about raising their hands and throwing him thought-provoking questions. “I felt like they were genuinely interested in what we all presented.”
Like Manny, Liem was excited for the chance to show today’s teens that construction isn’t limited to a certain type of job or person. As a VDC director, he explained his impact on projects and his role’s emphasis on visual technology—renderings, animations, quantity take-offs, 3D coordination, virtual mockups, augmented reality, virtual reality, reality capture, etc.
“My career certainly hasn’t been linear,” he says. “I was educated as a landscape architect and somehow ended up specializing in VDC for a construction company.”
Later that week, Ketchum YMCA’s Career Camp program managers shared that the teens’ post-event survey responses were extremely positive, including one that stated their time at Webcor inspired them to learn more about engineering and architecture.
“A lot of underserved communities don’t have access to resources like Ketchum’s Career Camp,” Agueda says. “I love that they offer these initiatives that expose students to possibilities they may never have heard of otherwise.”
As the father of a teenage daughter who’s benefited from similar career-focused presentations at her school, Liem was grateful for the opportunity to give back and do the same for downtown LA’s local teens.
“I’ve been having regular conversations with my daughter, who’s entering her junior year of high school, about what she wants to do when she gets older,” he says. “I appreciate those who volunteer to educate her and her peers on potential careers.
“Taking some time for Ketchum YMCA’s teens and doing something out of the ordinary was a great experience. I highly recommend others consider volunteering for a future YMCA Career Day.”
