Olsson Employees Volunteer with ACE Mentoring Program
June 2010 |  |
This year's program culminated in mid-May when five of the seniors they've helped mentor won more than $21,600 in scholarships through the ACE program. These students, from Smoky Hill and Grandview High school in Aurora, all plan to pursue careers in architecture, construction, or engineering, and each was recognized at ACE's year-end banquet. Both Bryant and Ernest attended the banquet to help recognize the students.
"It was such an amazing year, and it is so rewarding to see the kids get some financial aid to help them go to college," Bryant said.
But, how did Bryant and Ernest become so involved?
Several years ago, an ACE representative visited Olsson's Lakewood office and talked about the program and its need for mentors. At the time, all of the mentoring opportunities were far from the office, so Bryant approached his daughter's school in Aurora and inquired about starting a program there. Not long after, ACE became a part of the school's activities and Bryant and Ernest, along with a teacher, architects, and contractors, had a group of students interested in the industry and eager to learn.
Meeting weekly from early January until May, the students learned about a new topic at each session and incorporated what they learned into a project that showed aspects of architecture, construction, and engineering. This year, the students were asked to build their dream high school on the grounds of their current school.
"We picked a school since it's something that the students could easily relate to," Ernest said. "They know how big a library should be and what features they'd like to include."
During the year, Bryant and Ernest took the students on a tour of the new Cherry Creek elementary school where Olsson provided the civil engineering work.
"They really enjoyed the tour," Bryant said. "It was interesting for them to see all of the pieces that go into designing and constructing a new building."
Both Bryant and Ernest plan to continue their involvement with ACE next year.
"Just seeing the passion the students bring to their projects has been so positive," Ernest said. "It's great to see them excel. It helps bring back the passion for those of us who've been doing this work for awhile.
To learn more about the ACE mentoring program or to volunteer, visit http://www.acementor.org.
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