What's New?
- The year’s most popular classes
- Core Plus Construction growth and content updates
- Our Work with Career Connect Washington
- Partnership with TEACH Construction
- Congratulations Scholarship recipients!
- UW Construction Management Hall of Fame
- Celebrating endowments
Continuing Education Classes
Most Popular Classes
- Foreman Training Program
- Construction Leadership Series
- Print Reading – Construction Technical Series
- AGC Supervisory Training Program (STP)
New in 2025: Project Engineer Development
Numerous general contracting firms identified a gap between what is learned in school and what is expected on the jobsite for new project engineers. Our goal is to help fill this gap by designing a New Project Engineer class for recent graduates.
As we develop new classes, we rely on feedback from our students, instructors, and the program’s advisory committee. Courses are taught by industry experts to be specific and relevant. To design this new class, we are working with John Schaufelberger, retired Professor and Dean Emeritus at University of Washington’s College of Built Environments and AGC Education Foundation Trustee. The class is expected to launch in Spring 2025.
2024 By the Numbers
448
Classes Offered
3,055
Total Attendees
1,572
Attendees from 140 AGCW Member Companies
56
Custom Classes in 3 AGC WA Districts
Custom Classes
In addition to the Foundation’s regularly scheduled Continuing Education classes, the Foundation offers custom classes to make learning more accessible and specific to an employer’s needs.
For example, Palmer Scholars is taking advantage of custom classes for their pre-apprenticeship program. This year, we developed and delivered customized options including Forklift Training, OSHA 10, OSHA 30, and Aerial and Scissor Lift.
Educational advancement and professional development are key drivers of equity at Palmer Pathways. We emphasize skills-based training and certifications that offer our students clear, tangible pathways to career growth that are mission-aligned with the AGC Education Foundation. By equipping our Scholars with the knowledge and skills necessary to advance in their careers, together we ensure that they have equal opportunities to succeed regardless of their background. The Foundation’s curriculum addresses both technical and soft skills, empowering our Scholars to navigate the workplace confidently and to take advantage of opportunities for continued learning and leadership development.
Thank you to our Continuing Education Advisory Committee for their contributions that advance our classes to meet industry needs and trends.
Chairperson – Olin Wick, Foushée & Associates, Inc.; Alex Collins, CalPortland; Annika Gaffney, GLY Construction; Brian Aske, Lease Crutcher Lewis; Curt Gimmestad, Absher Construction Company; Erin Thurlow, Venture General Contracting; Lisa Harkness, Lease Crutcher Lewis; Suzanne Lessard, Tamarack Consulting; Tom Bajema, Andgar Corporation
5 Years of Core Plus Construction
AGC Education Foundation’s Core Plus Construction program enters its fifth year! Since 2020, the program has dramatically grown to be the signatory high school construction education platform across Washington.
Core Plus Construction is a free, state-wide program of study, providing top-quality, industry-vetted content to high school classrooms.
12
Skills Centers
90
School Districts
550,000
Legislative dollars provided to schools are a direct result of Core Plus Construction.
Program Updates
- INCLUSIVE LEARNING
In 2024, a grant from Career Connect Washington allowed us to update CPC content to enhance accessibility for all students. - A NEW CLASSROOM RESOURCE
To augment the Core Plus Construction program, the Foundation recently funded the gift of statewide licenses to TEACH Construction for the 2024-2025 school year. - SUMMER EDUCATOR EXTERNSHIP
In June, we hosted this event as a part of our professional development offerings. Thank you to Sellen, WG Clark, Lakeside, and Atkinson for participating in job site tours and presentations.
Read more about the addition of inclusive learning efforts and new resources below.
Thank you Core Plus Construction Sponsors!
Our Work with Career Connect Washington
The Foundation has served as Career Connect Washington’s (CCW) Construction Sector Lead since 2022. In this role, the AGC Education Foundation builds collaboration and coherency between employers and construction-career-connected learning opportunities.
With Career Connect Washington, the Foundation supports the creation and growth of construction career-connected learning opportunities for students. Together we will meet the goal that 100% of students will participate in a career-connected learning program by the time they graduate high school.
Learn more about CCW’s role in workforce development and the focus on construction.
Core Plus Construction Receives Grant from CCW
The Core Plus Construction program is also a grant recipient of CCW. With these funds, Core Plus has integrated Universal Design Learning (UDL) practices into the curriculum to enhance accessibility for all students. New content also includes lessons developed with employers to drive the development of skills desired for entry-level roles.
These additions ensure educators receive tools and strategies to meet diverse learning styles. Additionally, the construction industry is actively contributing to this career-connected learning which will translate into a skilled and diverse workforce.
The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) recognized the AGC Education Foundation and Core Plus Construction as an exemplar program in Career Technical Education.
More on UDL from Candace Conroy Director, K-12 Curriculum and Instruction
With this grant, we have rewritten all of our lesson plans and instructional materials to incorporate Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Adding the UDL component means Core Plus Construction content is accessible to all students regardless of their learning style or academic needs. Our lesson plans include differentiation ideas to support our teachers with their delivery of the content, and we have created student resources and assessments that align with these best practices.
Training on these improvements is essential for teachers and classrooms to take full advantage of these improvements. Therefore, in addition to creating new instructional materials, we are providing a series of professional development sessions to support teachers with the implementation of these resources.
We are proud of this work and feel it positively impacts student success. Our Core Plus Construction team was asked to present our work at the OSPI GATE Equity webinar as an example of how UDL can be incorporated into Career and Technical Education (CTE) classrooms.
When we integrate UDL into our instructional materials, we create a more inclusive classroom where all students thrive.
Foundation funds statewide licenses to
TEACH Construction
To augment Core Plus Construction, the Foundation has funded a statewide license to TEACH Construction for schools for the 2024-2025 school year.
TEACH Construction is an online library of instructional materials designed to support construction trades teachers. The content includes video lessons, project builds, skills exercises, assessments, and basic tools and skills training. Key benefits of the statewide license include free and equitable access, standardized instructional materials, and support for educators.
Together, Core Plus Construction and TEACH Construction aim to streamline and elevate curriculum resources for construction Career and Technical Education teachers. These programs work together and allow any K-12 (public, private, tribal compact) Career and Technical Education program in Washington State full access at no cost. Most importantly, our partnership allows the Foundation to invest more time and energy into working directly with educators.
The response from teachers has been strong. By the end of November, sixty-five teachers across the state registered for licenses and the accompanying training.
Thank you to our generous donors who established endowments at the Foundation. These resources made this partnership possible.
Responses from Teachers
“At our Skills Center, we serve over 100 Construction Trades students everyday. The access to TEACH has been incredibly impactful for us. My teaching partner and I have consistently visited and used resources from the site as a part of our weekly planning process this year. TEACH has quickly become our go-to source when supplementing our Core Plus Construction lesson planning.”
-Adam Shell, teacher at New Market Skills Center and Core Plus Construction veteran
“When I heard that AGC had purchased a subscription for Core Plus Construction teachers across the state, I was more than excited. These valuable resources have blended seamlessly with Core Plus Construction resources and help make my instruction clearer and more accessible to the students.”
–Logan McKay, Marysville Pilchuck Campus, registered apprenticeship preparation program (Marysville School District)
“Pairing the Core Plus Construction with the TEACH Construction platform has created a very cohesive teaching resource. ..Both platforms have provided me with valuable tools. I would say the Core Plus is the foundation and structure of the house and TEACH Construction has been interior walls and finishes.”
– John McCoy, Seattle Skills Center (Seattle Public Schools)
Thank you to our Tomorrow’s Construction Workforce Today Advisory Committee members for helping guide workforce development efforts.
Alex Collins, Cal Portland; Annika Gaffney- GLY Construction; Brad Neudorfer, Howard S. Wright; Christina Rupp, Construction Center of Excellence; Curt Gimmestad, Absher Construction; Jeff Christianson, Exxel Pacific; Jeff Tobin, Gray Construction; John Hurd, Lakeside Industries; Juliana Plant, Lease Crutcher Lewis; Kalin Magruder, Sellen Construction; Maria Uribe, Schuchart Construction; Matt Bridgewater, Lydig Construction; Nick Collins, RAFN Company; Wellington Arantes, Schuchart Construction
Congratulations 2024-2025 Scholarship Recipients!
Central Washington University
Jon Hylback, Kirya Reither, Makayla Watterson, Preston Mark
University of Washington
Antonio Meza, Cameron Arreola, Elijah Gilmer, Gabriel Lind, Henry Grandy, John Van Doan, Luke DuComb-Festor, Maesun Boo Dier Markley, Rachel Ly, Ryan Lui, Sydney Ai Miyasato
Washington State University
Billy Scammell, Casey Bailey, Grace Booth, Keagan Barnwell, Molly Mahoney, Nathan Vani, Zach Mayer
The following top scholars were highlighted by our review committee. Each received $10,000.
UW Construction Management Hall of Fame
We are honored to share that Executive Director, Diane Kocer, was inducted into the UW Construction Management Hall of Fame. This award recognizes individuals for their contributions to the construction industry.
Serving as the Executive Director of the AGC Education Foundation since 2009, Diane has embodied its mission in every way. She has built countless programs to introduce students to construction and place people directly into jobs. She has fundraised and delivered a scholarship program for hundreds of students across the state in 2 and 4-year programs, and named endowments have doubled. Diane invests in new class offerings each year to train and upskill current construction professionals.
The Foundation was founded by AGC of Washington members with a mission to develop and promote construction careers. Under Diane’s leadership, the Foundation has advanced this mission and the industry to support members.
Photo: 2024 Construction Management Hall of Fame inductees Darlene Septelka, University of Washington, Rick Hermanson, Hermanson Company, and Diane Kocer at the celebration on May 10. Photo: University of Washington.
Annual Fund Contributions
The Foundation gratefully recognizes the donors who participated in the 2023-2024 Annual Fund. These partnerships advance our programs to strengthen how we deliver on our mission.
Champions ($10,000 plus)
Byron & Alice Lockwood Foundation
Gray Lumber Company
Schuchart
Sellen Community Foundation
Visionaries ($5,000 to $9,999)
Abbott Construction
Reed Family Fund
GLY Construction
Lease Crutcher Lewis
Patrons ($2,500 – $4,999)
Absher Construction
Ashbaugh Beal
ASI Wealth Management
Bayley Construction
CalPortland
Elaine Ervin
Ferguson Construction
Huber Brothers
Moss Adams
Parker Smith & Feek, Inc.
Propel Insurance
Tucci & Sons, Inc
Founders ($1,000 – $2,499)
Annika Gaffney
Bob and Melisse Barrett
Darron Pease
Dennis (+) and Priscilla Dickert
Foushée and Associates
Frederick Stearns Foundation
Kurt and Lisa Boyd
RAFN Company
USI Insurance Northwest
Wendy and Stephan Sefcik
WG Clark Construction
Partners ($100 – $999)
Brad and Dina Hayes
Frank and Susan Young
Jeff Christianson
Julianna and Steve Plant
Robert Marconi
(+) deceased 2023
Join us
Endowments
The Endowment Fund offers donors the opportunity to create a named endowment and to designate its purpose.
The AGC Education Foundation has 44 named endowments, each with a principal gift of at least $25,000 or more. All funds donated to the AGC EF Endowment Fund remain in a restricted account with only the interest available for the intended purpose.
These gifts create an impactful, everlasting legacy to ensure a donor’s values and priorities are supported infinitely.
Program Announcements
- Endowment fully funded! The John Schaufelberger Endowed Scholarship, supports University of Washington students based on their financial need and commitment to construction careers.
- New! Construction Financial Management Association Puget Sound Chapter Endowment, funding scholarships for a 2 or 4 year accounting degree
Named Endowments
1990 Chester and Elizabeth Johnson Memorial Scholarship
1993 Employees of Northwest Cascade
1993 Robert B. McEachern Memorial Fund
1994 Mr. and Mrs. Allan F. Osberg Scholarship
1994 Hugh S. Ferguson Endowment
1994 Larry Johnson/Prime Construction Co.
1995 MulvannyG2 Memorial Endowment in memory of Patricia Chikamoto Lee
1995 Mr. A.E DeAtley Memorial Scholarship
1996 Foushée and Associates Company, Inc. Scholarship Endowment
1996 Donald L. Clark Memorial Endowment
1996 Employees of Ferguson Construction Endowment
1996 Employees of GLY Construction Endowment
1996 William and Jean Scott Building Construction Fund
1997 Howard S. Lease Memorial Endowment Fund
1998 Absher Construction Company Endowment
1998 Egge-Koon Endowment Fund
1998 Employees of J.R Abbott Construction Training and Education Fund
1998 Frank and Susan Young Endowment Fund
1998 Robert W. Austin Memorial Endowment Fund
1998 Sellen Construction Company Endowment
1999 Donald and Clarice Bocek Scholarship
1999 E. Kent Halvorson, Inc.
2001 Robert L. and Betty L. Landau Scholarship
2005 Bob Barrett and Family Endowment Fund
2005 Byron W. and Alice L. Lockwood Foundation Endowment
2005 Dennis and Priscilla Dickert Endowment
2005 Pease Construction Endowment Fund
2006 Moss Adams LLP Endowment
2006 Nuprecon, Inc. Endowment
2007 UMC Charitable Foundation Endowment
2009 James P. Crutcher Endowment
2012 Betcher Family Foundation Endowment Fund
2012 Gene Colin Two Year College Scholarship Fund
2015 Joe Arrants Memorial Scholarship
2015 Matthew and Suzanne Lessard Scholarship Endowment
2015 AGC of Washington Endowment
2017 Ferguson Construction’s Gene Colin Outstanding Educator Memorial Endowment
2018 Robert L. Landau Memorial Endowment
2018 Bob and Beverly Adams Heavy Civil Construction Scholarship Endowment
2018 Becky Wallace Scholarship for Women in Construction
2020 James M. Lessard Memorial Scholarship Endowment
2021 Ervin Family Endowment
2022 John Schaufelberger Endowed Scholarship
2024 Construction Financial Management Association Puget Sound Chapter Scholarship
The John Schaufelberger Endowed Scholarship
The Foundation is honored to have John Schaufelberger as a valued contributor to our mission. In 2022, we were further honored to announce his generous establishment of the John Schaufelberger Endowed Scholarship. The endowment gift was completed this year and will support its first scholarship student in 2025. This scholarship is designated to support University of Washington’s Construction Management students based on their financial need and commitment to construction.
In an article published by ENR California, John was quoted: “It’s not so much what you do, it’s what you leave behind, it’s how you develop other people with their careers, how you develop other people for new positions or to take your place.”
John’s career has taken him through thirty years as an Officer in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and nearly thirty more at the University of Washington where he currently serves as Professor and Dean Emeritus for the College of Built Environments. He is also the author of ten textbooks. John is a key member of the Foundation’s Board of Trustees. Countless students, some on our board, can attest to John’s commitment to developing people’s construction careers.
Thank you, John Schaufelberger!
Thank you to our Board of Trustees
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
President – Jeff Tobin, Gray
Past President – Rick Workman, W.G. Clark Construction Co.
Treasurer – Elaine Ervin, Moss Adams LLP, retired
Officer – Brad Hayes, Sellen Construction
Officer – Curt Gimmestad, Absher Construction
Officer – Jim Elliott, GLY Construction
Officer – Mike Price, Abbott Construction, retired
Officer /2nd VP AGCW, Jeff Tiegs, Lincoln Construction
BOARD MEMBERS
Aaron Faulk, Moss Adams LLP
Alex Collins, CalPortland
Annika Gaffney, GLY Construction
Bob Marconi, Ashbaugh Beal
Bryan Eppler, University Mechanical Contractors, Inc.
Chip Gregory, RAFN Company
Christina Rupp, Construction Center of Excellence
Dorothy Reed, USI Insurance Services
Jeff Christianson, Exxel Pacific
John Schaufelberger, University of Washington
Julianna Plant, Lease Crutcher Lewis
Kalin Magruder, Sellen Construction
Kurt Boyd, Valley Electric Company
Leah Hanson, IMCO Construction
Matt Lessard, Wilcox Construction
Max Hanley, Propel Insurance
Michael Rechnitz, Schuchart
Olin Wick, Foushée & Associates, Inc.
Phil Wallace, Kiewit
Ron Lange, Parker, Smith & Feek, Inc.
Sean Woerman, Lydig Construction
Steve Grasso, Bayley Construction
Tyler Tonkin, GLY Construction
Wendy Simmons, Middle of Six
EMERITUS BOARD MEMBERS
Frank Young, Jr., FNY Associates, Inc.
Jim Crutcher, Lease Crutcher Lewis
EX-OFFICIO BOARD MEMBERS
David D’Hondt, AGC of Washington
Giovanni Migliaccio, University of Washington
Jason Peschel, Washington State University
Warren Plugge, Central Washington University
