Guest Blog post by: Floor Covering Education Foundation (FCEF)
The Floor Covering Education Foundation (FCEF) is not just another organization; it’s a lifeline for the flooring industry. Our mission is to spotlight the opportunities within flooring, attract fresh talent, fund their education, and ensure these individuals secure rewarding careers. Through FCEF’s initiatives, we’re not just training installers—we’re preserving an art form and ensuring the future stability of our industry.
We’ve achieved groundbreaking milestones, such as launching the Basic Floor Covering Installation Program in five colleges nationwide and planning to expand to 11 more by Spring 2025. Our dual enrollment program is empowering high school students to explore flooring as a career, and we’ve awarded over 286 scholarships totaling $485,446 to nurture new talent.
Our college program, encompassing 300 contact hours in tile, carpet, hardwood, and resilient flooring, offers unique experiences like industry event attendance.
In April, over 20 students from Georgia colleges participating in our program attended Coverings 2024 in Atlanta. They observed the CTI Testing at the Ceramic Tile Education Foundation booth, witnessed demos at the Installation Innovation Stage, and interacted with industry leaders like QEP Roberts’ VP Marketing Communications Leslie Del Pozo and President & CEO Leonard Gould. Students were also able to speak with several other industry representatives during the show floor tour led by NTCA leadership.
The impact of these experiences is profound. Sasha, a dual enrollment student, expressed her awe at the long-term dedication of industry veterans she met, noting how inspiring it was to see people with over 25 years of experience still passionate about their work. Such experiences not only educate but also ignite a lasting enthusiasm for the trade.
These success stories highlight the collective power of the industry coming together to address the installation crisis. But to sustain and expand these efforts, we need your support. Financial contributions from industry stakeholders are crucial. If you’re a flooring retailer, consider supporting the FCEF with a $100 monthly donation per location. Manufacturers and distributors, we urge you to back our initiatives for the latter half of 2024 and incorporate ongoing support into your 2025 budgets.
Your partnership can transform lives, secure the future of the flooring industry, and ensure that our projects don’t stall for lack of skilled installers. Join us in making a lasting impact—together, we can turn the tide. Sign up today and automate your donations here.
Interested? You can contact FCEF at:
Floor Covering Education Foundation
855 Abutment Rd
Dalton, GA 30721
Phone: (706) 529-8002
Email: [email protected]
