Kirkwood program awarded at International Builders Show

Members of the Kirkwood Community College team honored at the International Builders Show Feb. 8-11, 2022. CREDIT KIRKWOOD COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Kirkwood Community College won two awards at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) International Builders Show, which took place in Orlando from Feb. 8-11.

In addition, Aaron McGlynn, who works with Kirkwood’s Industry Advisory Board, was honored for his exceptional work with the college.

The awards were a recognition of the efforts of Kirkwood and its local chapter co-sponsor, the Iowa City Area Home Builders Association.

The college won first place for the Associate Program Student Competition. The award was based on a team project where classroom skills were used to complete a management project proposal for a real company. The team, comprised of students and led by faculty members, completed a set of working drawings, a detailed cost estimate, and a complete construction schedule for a fourplex plan. In addition, the team determined the overhead and percentage rate to determine the overall profit. The documents were then presented to a panel of judges at the International Builders Show as part of the competition.

This is the second first-place finish in the last three years for the college.

“We are so proud of the Kirkwood student team,” said Kirkwood Professor of Construction Technology Joe Greathouse. “Their dedication to the project and to their team is outstanding. In a year with so many challenges in and out of the classroom, these students provided a shining example of what teamwork looks like in the face of adversity.”

In addition to the Student Competition Award, Kirkwood Student Kyle Hicks received the Outstanding Student Award and Aaron McGlynn of Cabinet Works was recognized as the Outstanding Industry Advisory Board Member for his work on Kirkwood’s Industry Advisory Board.

Outside of his job as a general manager of a small family-owned cabinet shop, Mr. McGlynn is heavily involved at Kirkwood and attends classroom activities, career fairs, and outreach events. Most recently, he participated in the development of a new work-based learning course for the Construction Management program. He also teaches as an adjunct instructor for Kirkwood’s ACE Academy at the Washington County Regional Center.

To Mr. Greathouse, Mr. McGlynn is an asset to the college whose efforts will have a major impact on students now and in the future.

“Aaron is an amazing teacher and a tremendous asset to our students, faculty, and programs at Kirkwood Community College'” Mr. Greathouse said. “We are so fortunate to have Aaron on our team.”

For more information about the 2022 NAHB student competitions, go to nahb.org.