Atlanta, Ga. (November 14, 2020) – Batson-Cook Construction, in coordination with the Associated General Contractors of Georgia (AGC Georgia), hosted a Construction Merit Badge Day for the Atlanta Area Council, Boy Scouts of America. Participating Scouts learned the fundamental skills of specific construction trades from highly trained experts throughout a full day of activities, which included drafting, electrical work, landscaping architecture, safety, surveying, and welding.
“Scouting helps youths develop academic skills, self-confidence, ethics, leadership and citizenship skills that influence their adult lives,” said Randy Hall, president and CEO of Batson-Cook Construction and member of both AGC Georgia and the Atlanta Area Council, BSA Board of Directors. “Opportunities like Construction Merit Badge Day introduces Scouts to an important set of skills that can lead them to a rewarding career someday in their future.”
Scouts who chose surveying, for example, utilized a scale ruler to compose a building’s foundation on their own. The Scouts had to use math and critical thinking skills to scale down the building in their final rendering. The participants were also introduced to Autodesk AutoCAD, a design and drafting application that they used to create a digital staircase.
By including experienced construction professionals, Scouts received an unparalleled experience and opportunity. After attending online and in-person classes designed to educate Scouts on these trades in the morning, they traveled to the Winship at Midtown facility at Emory University Hospital Midtown construction site, an active jobsite that paused work for the scouts, where they put those new skills to practice. By the end of the day, they will have earned a merit badge related to their chosen fields of study and be a step closer to their Eagle Badge.
Additional support from the day was provided by Gibson Landscape, Applied Software, Prevision Stone, and Universal Steel.