Scholarships Allow Competition Winner To Pursue Skilled Trades Career
Thanks to scholarships, a skilled trades student at Western Piedmont Community College is building a better future for himself and others.
Burke County native Joshua Hess began using his construction skills at a young age in service to his family. When he was in middle school, his father was involved in a serious accident while driving an 18-wheeler that resulted in the loss of his leg.
“Our house really had no way to access in a wheelchair, so we had to build ramps for him,” Hess said. “While I was building them, I realized I had a chance to help people and also do something I really enjoyed. That’s mostly what drove me into the trades. Having to pick up the responsibilities he did around the house made me grow up a little quicker, because I didn’t want my momma to have to do everything.
“Luckily, he is doing better. He has a prosthetic leg and is doing the best he can, making me proud every day and giving me someone to look up to.”
Hess participated in the Construction Rodeo competition multiple times while he was a student at East Burke High School. The event is a collaboration between WPCC and high schools from around the region. Students from the high schools come to the college’s Regional Skilled Trades Solutions Center and compete in construction skill drills for a chance to win construction-related prizes provided by event sponsors. The students also have the opportunity to network with industry-related vendors and learn more about job opportunities in the construction field.
During his senior year this spring, Hess was declared the winner of Construction Rodeo and was awarded a $500 scholarship to attend the building construction technology program at WPCC this fall.
“I got the opportunity this year to not only participate, but I also got to teach some of my friends how to do different things involving the Rodeo,” Hess said. “I believe the Rodeo is an amazing event and such an opportunity for young men and women to search out jobs they may love. The staff and students at WPCC who put on the Rodeo are amazing, and you couldn’t ask for the event to go smoother for the participants. Winning it was an honor, and for my best friend, Zach Ward, to win second place made it even better.”
Scholarship in hand, he decided to enroll in the college’s construction program. He applied for financial aid and was additionally awarded the Helen Carswell and James Patrick Hennessee Scholarship and the William Corpening Merit Scholarship.
“The scholarships have greatly helped me attend college,” Hess said. “Without them, I would have went somewhere and worked instead of going for an education to better my life. The scholarships allow me to go to school without the worry of having a full-time job so I can allow more time to focus on my education for a brighter future.”
He is learning a lot in the program.
“So far this fall, my classes have been amazing,” Hess said. “I like the fact that the degree I’m pursuing makes me take a portion of every trade so I can find which one I like the best.”
He has already focused on a particular area of interest.
“My career plans going into college were to come out and become a construction manager, but I have started to really fall in love with electrical work,” Hess said. “I’m considering going back to study that further once I graduate.”
He encouraged people to consider donating to the Western Piedmont Foundation to support students like him in achieving their academic and career goals, no matter what their financial situation might be. In the case of skilled trades, our infrastructure depends on it.
“The trades are literally a dying breed,” Hess said. “There are only one or two (workers) going in, while seven or eight retire, in most cases. Someone’s going to need to know how to wire a house and fix plumbing in 20 years. Investing in a student like me is the best way to make sure that can happen. If more people go to school to become a part of the trades, the trades will never be lost.”
Published: 11/6/2025