ABC-SEMI Issue 1 2018

8 Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc. O utside the tall, intimidating secu- rity gates surrounding the Detroit Job Corps (DJC) campus, there are rows of dilapidated houses. Vacant homes litter the neighborhood, with broken windows and front doors flung open, awaiting entry from uninvited guests. Launched in Detroit in 1972, Detroit Job Corps provides a no-cost education and career technical training program that helps high-risk youth ages 16 to 24 in a full-time residential setting. This program is a beacon of hope to a struggling pop- ulation. Thirty-six percent of Detroiters live in poverty, making it the highest rate among the nation’s 20 largest cities. ABC Southeastern Michigan Chapter electrical instructor, Ricardo Smith, knows what it’s like to grow up with the odds stacked against him. He is an African American who grew up in the rough and tumble neighborhoods of Detroit. His dad left home when he was 9 or 10 years old, leaving his mom to raise seven kids on her own. Fate led Ricardo to the skilled trades when his high school principal required all graduating seniors to attend the Randolph School and Technical Center, where he fell in love with the electrical trade. After years of working in the industry, Ricardo met ABC SE Michigan founding president, Dennis Siekierski, at a Skills USA competition. Siekierski and Smith talked about him teaching electrical classes at ABC. Fast forward to today, Smith has been teaching at ABC for four years now. He has set himself apart as a distinguished leader among nearly 20 in- structors at the rapidly-expanding school. He serves as a classroom mentor and role model to many. Working two decades in the electrical field, Smith slowly made his way to the top, landing as the maintenance manager/ industrial engineer for Lear Corporation. While he enjoyed the prestige that comes from working for a tier 1 auto supplier in the automotive capitol of the world, that INSTRUCTOR OF THE YEAR AWARD ABC’s Ricardo Smith Nominated for National Craft Instructor of the Year Award