A daylong event featuring industry experts and local contractors promoted safety—and professional contacts—to approximately 200 high school students from across the region.

The Capital Region BOCES Trench Safety Day brought together representatives of the National Utility Contractors Association (NUCA) and area businesses who taught aspiring construction workers at the Career and Technical Education (CTE) center the safety skills needed to build trenches.

“This is a great opportunity for the students. I wish I had the opportunities these students are to learn the fundamentals at such a young age,” said Austin DiSiena, of Rifenburg Construction, one of the partners involved with the event.

Throughout the day, students rotated through interactive, 20-minute training stations, gaining practical knowledge and seeing firsthand how safety procedures, specialized equipment, and teamwork come together on the job site. Stations include Trench box assembly, utility line locating, hydrovac demonstration and more.

“This event is important because it shows us the safety skills we will need. It also shows us a lot of different opportunities in  the field. It’s a blessing to be able to come here and experience this,” said Takeem Robinson, a Heavy Equipment Repair and Operation (HERO) student from Schenectady.

Beyond the safety aspects of the training, the students met with industry experts and even showed their abilities in operating equipment.

“This is exciting because I get to meet people who might be employers someday, as well as learn skills,” said Allie Smith, a HERO student from Schoharie. “We also got to help prepare the roads and trenches for today, which gave us real world experiences.”

Trench and excavation safety is a major issue within the construction industry, with more than 250 deaths in the United States attributed to trench and excavating mishaps in a 10-year period concluding in 2024. Eleven more industry deaths occurred in just the first six months of 2025, federal statistics showed.

“As they enter the industry, these young students will need to know safety. As they grow, they will have families that they need to be responsible for and be able to come home to at the end of the day,” said Dan Jordan, of The DDS Companies.

The business partners said there is a real need for well-trained students to enter the construction and heavy equipment operator industries.

“We have a lot of job opportunities for people who have the hands-on experience BOCES students have,’ DiSiena said.

Nancy Liddle, Capital Region BOCES Managing Program Coordinator-Business & Community Partnerships, thanked the business and government partners for their continued work with Capital Region BOCES students.

“The high-impact, hands-on event brought together students and industry professionals for an exciting day focused on one of the construction industry’s most important priorities — trench and excavation safety,” Liddle said. “That work is vital for the future of the industry and for the future of these students.”