Grayson Bradley and team place third in the nation at SkillsUSA

Grayson Bradley, of William Blount High School, and a team of Sevier County High School students placed third in the nation at the SkillsUSA National competition in Atlanta.

Skills National is a nation-wide competition where students come together to compete in Career and Technical Education categories, such as construction, robotics and welding.

The missing piece

Bradley had competed individually at the state level but missed first place by two points on a formality.

The SCHS Construction Core teacher, Brandon Johnson, saw Bradley’s work at the state competition and was impressed by his skills. When his team, set to attend Nationals, lost a member, Johnson asked if Bradley would join.

WBHS Construction teacher Doug Blair said, “I like to believe he was the missing piece that got them on the podium,”

The group was tasked with constructing a bathroom, complete with plumbing, electrical wiring, bricking and siding. The group received the plan at the competition the night before and had two days to complete it.

Bradley said he was initially nervous about how they would all communicate with each other but quickly found that they communicated well and his integration onto their team was seamless.

Blair said the team’s third-place finish speaks volumes to their skill level, as the projects they assign at nationals are very complex.

Many competing students come from trade schools, where their entire course load could be in construction-based classes, whereas Bradley’s team takes core academic classes with their CTE classes as electives.

Bradley said at competition, they divided up the work based on everyone’s strengths; he was in charge of plumbing.

Bradley said while the plumbing aspect was challenging, he said another hurdle to clear in the competition was working with people he didn’t know.

“It was hard to get to know them and work together at the same time,” he said.

Blair said that learning how to work with people you’ve just met is a skill that would translate well to a job site where a builder may not know other workers.

Bradley enjoyed the social aspect of the competition. He was able to meet up with friends he wouldn’t otherwise see. While the team worked incredibly hard, they also found time to enjoy each other’s company and have a little fun on the trip, like visiting the aquarium or going out for a celebratory dinner. His team was composed of all seniors, so it was a good final send-off into life post-high school, he said.

The beginnings of a career

Bradley has been involved in construction classes at WBHS for three years. Blair described him as a bright and intuitive student.

“Grayson’s got a unique skill set. I told him at the signing day, Nick Saban said you can teach a guy how to swing a bat but you can’t teach him how to hit a good pitch. There has to be some athletic intuition there. That sums it up for Grayson. I can teach you how to read a tape measure and teach you how to drive a nail — there has to be some intuition there,” said Blair.

Bradley got involved in building when he and two friends decided to sign up for Blair’s class, Fundamentals of Construction. He said they thought it would be fun to build things and be in class together. That was his sophomore year. They liked the class so much, they kept on coming back. When Bradley started work-based learning, Blair offered him a position with his company, Blair Builders.

Bradley’s plans for now are to continue working for Blair Builders, but Blair said he has been encouraging Bradley to look into certification programs through UTK or TCAT, which would allow him to take on leadership roles at larger construction companies, which Blair is confident Bradley would excel at due to his skill set and intelligence.

CTE classes

CTE classes are a great way for students to test the waters regarding prospective career areas and see what they may want to pursue in the future, said Bradley. He talked about how the relationship that develops in CTE classes is different from that of other classes that are less hands-on.

“They want to teach you how to do things instead of just giving you work,” Bradley said.

Blair said that there is a trust that develops when students are working with nail guns, saws and things that could be dangerous if not used correctly. There is more at stake.

Math was Bradley’s favorite subject and something he was good at — he said those math skills translated well in CTE.

“I was in Geometry junior year, so of course, that helped even farther in construction, and construction helped me with my Geometry because it just went hand-in-hand,” said Bradley.

Bradley said he can learn the answers from a book, but retention is the struggle. In his CTE class, which provides hands-on learning, he found visual and kinesthetic learning worked much better for him. He credits Blair with sparking his interest in building.

A passion for teaching

Blair has a passion for teaching. He started his college career right out of high school but when tragedy struck his family and his mother died in an automobile accident in his sophomore year, Blair dropped out of school.

“I was too young to handle that kind of emotion,” said Blair.

Blair ended up pursuing a career in construction and in 2002, started his business.

While he loves what he does, Blair said owning a business can be challenging. He also found that it was taking a physical toll as he got older. One day, his wife saw an opening at Heritage High School for a position teaching construction, and Blair, who never lost that desire to teach, jumped on it.

Blair taught at HHS for four years before joining the teaching staff at WBHS, where he is going into his fourth year of instruction.

He says he loves going to work.

“We’re building stuff but the biggest thing we’re building is relationships,” said Blair.