The University of Kentucky, in partnership with Turner Construction, will be hosting its inaugural Construction Diversity Accelerator (CDA) program, in person for the 2022 season. Classes will be held in the Gatton Student Center beginning March 8.

The CDA program is designed to help minority-owned, women-owned and other underrepresented construction-related businesses gain access to the tools, resources and opportunities to be competitive in the construction industry.

"The University of Kentucky is constantly adding new buildings or renovating existing structures on campus; therefore, we always have a need for various construction trades. Increasing our pool of diverse suppliers creates more competition and innovation and spurs our local economy. We want to be intentional in creating opportunities for inclusion on construction projects at UK, but we also want to mentor diverse suppliers to find opportunities with other community partners like the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government and Fayette County Public Schools. We are excited to partner with Turner and with the Kentucky Procurement Technical Assistance Center (KYPTAC) to bring a holistic approach to the accelerator program," said Marilyn Clark, the supplier diversity manager for UK.

The CDA program is 10 weeks and will cover important topics like safety, site logistics, insurance and bonding, contracts, subcontracting, construction drawings and specifications, estimating, scheduling, bid and proposal preparation, construction accounting, certification and more. The program culminates in a mock bid project that calls on teams to present their proposals in front of a panel of expert judges. This weekly program will help businesses gain hands-on, experiential learning.

“Turner is thrilled to partner with the University of Kentucky to bring this program to the Central Kentucky area. Our company has been committed to engaging with and supporting the development of underrepresented businesses in our communities for decades and this program serves as an extension of that commitment. We understand that to achieve greater equity and inclusion within our industry, we must proactively create opportunities for underrepresented firms to grow their businesses. We applaud Marilyn and her team for helping to activate our shared vision of creating a more intentionally inclusive economic ecosystem,” said Kristen Smitherman-Voltaire, community and citizenship manager at Turner.

The application deadline for the 2022 program is 5 p.m. EST Friday, Feb. 1, 2022. The application can be found here https://forms.office.com/r/DjqrHDyNBJ. To ensure those participating have a successful CDA program, only 15 companies will be accepted for the 2022 season.

The Kentucky Procurement Technical Assistance Center will be the resource partner for the businesses enrolled in the CDA. Counselors will assist suppliers with certifications, capability statements and individual coaching. Businesses who are not admitted into the program can also sign up to become a client with KYPTAC to develop their business further and apply again next year.

“Our partnership with UK and Turner Construction aims to foster an inclusive and collaborative environment where our teams, clients, and community members can participate and work together to increase equity and diversity in contracting.” said Nancy Brown, executive director of Kentucky Procurement Technical Assistance Center (KYPTAC). 

KYPTAC, an initiative of the Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation (KSTC), promotes economic development and private sector business growth by providing free assistance to companies interested in providing products or services to federal, state and local governments and large primes, which annually offer billions of dollars in contracts to private sector companies.