KNOX COUNTY, Tenn. — On Tuesday, Knox County leaders gathered for a ceremony meant to take a step towards creating a new training school meant to attract and train construction workers.
The Skilled Trades Academy and Regional Training Center, or START Center, will be located at 1801 N. Central St., inside a warehouse. Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs arrived there along with other leaders for a ceremonial contract signing.
It will be run by the Associated Builders and Contractors of Greater Tennessee. The group has a similar school in Nashville. It's a national construction trade association that "encourages open competition and a free-enterprise approach that awards contracts based solely on merit."
According to an earlier release, the START Center will cover trades such as framing, masonry, electrical work, welding and mechanical work. Curricula are approved by the Department of Labor, according to Knox County, and programs will be taught in a classroom setting by instructors who practice their trade in the field.
Classes are expected to be held from 4 p.m. through 7 p.m., giving students the chance to work during the day, according to a press release from 2021. Programs will also take four years to complete.
In 2021, Knox County also said the state provided around $1 million to complete the training center.
