UPCC Seeking Students for ‘Construction Connect UP’ 2025-26
The Upper Peninsula Construction Council is seeking current high school juniors to participate in Construction Connect UP for the 2025-26 school year.
“The Construction Connect UP Program is designed to serve as an effective transition from school to career,” said UPCC Executive Director Mike Smith. “Students who successfully complete the program can be drafted directly into skilled trades apprenticeships, bypassing the application process altogether.”
The UPCC collaborated with its signatory contractors & UP building trades unions, UP Michigan Works, Delta-Schoolcraft ISD, Dickinson-Iron ISD and Marquette-Alger Regional Education Services Agency to develop a program that is skill-based, labor- and industry-approved and directly linked to real workplace situations.
Students' schedules need to allow for two hours in the mornings or afternoon for working, learning, and earning $14 an hour on job sites.
To qualify, students must at the time of the program’s start:
Be a high school senior at least 17 years of age
Be enrolled in a certified CTE Program
Have a driver’s license (or in process) and reliable transportation
Pass a drug screen
“There is a huge need across the U.P. for skilled tradespeople,” Smith said. “The CCUP program is great because you get to work in the real world, and you get paid doing it. It’s a great way to get out and start a career.”
Students can apply here.
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