For Construct Tomorrow, it’s three down and eight events to go. After three cities (Rochester, Mankato and Minneapolis at the Heritage Center), six more remain – Hinckley, St. Paul, Anoka County, Duluth, St. Cloud and Bemidji. Several of the remaining events will be held at some notable Minnesota venues: The Hinckley event will take place at Grand Casino; the St. Paul event will be held for the second year in a row at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds; and the Anoka one will be at the National Sports Center in Blaine. 

One change Construct Tomorrow organizers made this year which will impact the rest of the schedule is the implementation of student and teacher satisfaction surveys. After three events, the organizers learned students were discouraged by having to stand in line in order to access the displays. One remedy was to limit the amount of students admitted per time slot, going from 250 to 200. The second remedy has come from the contractors involved. JE Dunn, the mega contractor operating heavily in the Twin Cities, brought an activity. It’s been such a noteworthy addition other contractors have taken notice. It helps create an atmosphere where contractors can work with the students. According to first-year program coordinator Hailey Anunson, “They value the partnership with us. They are planting a seed for a future workforce.”

The key to engaging students could boil down to a term probably not in Webster’s Dictionary – making a display that’s “game-ified.” The trades who have the best interaction have something that’s hands on versus just having information they can share. Added Anunson: “Honestly, when I ask students when they come to my booth to turn in their survey I always ask them what their favorite trade was and why. A lot of them say they enjoyed the trades with the VR (virtual reality) sets. I think it speaks their language now; it’s what they are used to.” 

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