AUSTIN, TX — Associated General Contractors of Texas (AGC of Texas) President Wade Miller promoted an ambitious scholarship fundraising goal of $1.5 million ahead of the association’s annual gala. On the night of the gala, that goal was achieved.
“The unattainable became attainable. We set a new bar and thank y'all so much,” said Miller, President of Big Creek Construction, once the numbers were tallied. “It took a lot to get there. Everybody did their part. A lot of extra [auction] trips, a lot of extra [auction] items got put on, and it all worked out. So, thank y'all so much.”
“I felt we accomplished something that many folks didn’t think we would,” Miller added. “I had a gut feeling that we would get there. Our members know how to step up to a challenge. They just need to know the goal. Once it’s in sight, we will figure out how to get there.”
Miller has talked up the scholarship program for much of the year, emphasizing the need to ramp up the highway construction industry’s workforce. “Once I set the goal at the May luncheon, it was out there and being talked about. I did reinforce my goal at a few of the area meetings that I attended,” Miller said after the event.
The Texas Department of Transportation will let a record $14 billion worth of construction contracts this year. “We have a responsibility to get that work done,” Miller said moments before the live auction started. "These young men and women that we are giving scholarships to are the future leaders of our industry.”
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AGC of Texas awarded a record 45 scholarships this year, each of which is worth a maximum of $40,000 over four years for traditional scholars and $20,000 for vocational and technical scholars.
AGC Scholarship Committee Chair Will Calame, of The Levy Company, described the scholarships as “life changing” for the hundreds of recipients over the past 31 years. The financial help benefited him when he was a student struggling to make ends meet. “That scholarship supported me when I needed it most,” Calame said.
Miller highlighted the industry’s priority of workforce development. “It’s the AGC’s way to champion the cause through our scholarship program,” he said. “We have a record program to build. It takes people to get the job done.”
This year’s record response for the scholarship program moved AGC’s benchmark.
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“It was $1 million. Now it’s $1.5 million,” Miller said. “The next benchmark will be $2 million. If our market continues to grow, then our scholarship program needs to grow with it. We cannot go backwards.”
