In this RLW, Heidi J. Ellsworth sits down with Sherri Miles of Miles Roofing, Rick Damato of Damato Enterprises, Tim Stephens of Architectural Sheet Metal and John Esbenshade of National Roofing Contractors Association (NRCA) to talk about workforce development and their recent participation in the national SkillsUSA competition. Now in its second year, the SkillsUSA commercial roofing competition is an exciting time for the future of roofing with students from ten states competing for the title of top thermoplastic installation. Learn from contractors who had students competing on how they built their programs and became ingrained in their local trade schools. Workforce development is the future of the roofing industry and vocational schools are a top pipeline for solving our labor shortage. Join us to learn about the National Roofing Contractors Association’s workforce development initiatives and find out how to be involved with your local vocational schools and mentor competition participants.