This Giving Tuesday our workforce development program The Campaign for Historic Trades is raising funds to help young adults with cost of living expenses during their 12-26 week terms with the carpentry, woodcrafting, & masonry teams at the Historic Preservation Training Center in Frederick, Md.
Groundbreaking decision provides cohesive framework to enter careers in historic trades
BALTIMORE (November 14, 2023) – The Campaign for Historic Trades, a national workforce development program, powered by Preservation Maryland, that is focused on expanding and strengthening careers in the historic trades, today announced the Maryland Department of Labor approved its first-of-its-kind group apprenticeship program for state registration. The program sets standards – including on-the-job learning, related instruction, and core competencies – that provide a clear process for entering the workforce in roles like deconstruction technician, historic window technician, and preservation carpenter.
In honor of National Preservation Month Preservation Maryland hosted elected officials, members of the preservation community, and stakeholders today in Frederick to recognize the passage of The Frederick Jobs and Historic Preservation Training Center Land Acquisition Act.
L-R: Preservation Maryland’s President & CEO Nicholas Redding, HPTC’s Superintendent Moss Rudley, HPTC’s Deputy Superintendent Brandon Gordon, Frederick County Council President Brad Young, Congressman David Trone, Senator Chris Van Hollen, Frederick County Executive Jessica Fitzwater, and Frederick Mayor Michael O’Connor tour HPTC.
Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Congressman David Trone (D-Md.), Frederick County Executive Jessica Fitzwater, Frederick Mayor Michael O’Connor, and Frederick County Council President Brad Young joined Preservation Maryland’s President & CEO Nicholas Redding and National Park Service’s Historic Preservation Training Center’s (HPTC) Superintendent Moss Rudley for the event, which included a guided tour of HPTC’s current facility and a formal program at Frederick’s Visitor’s Center.
L-R: Redding, Mayor O’Connor, Congressman Trone, Gordon, Senator Van Hollen.
Sponsored by Senators Cardin and Van Hollen and by Congressman Trone in the House of Representatives, the legislation gives the National Park Service congressional authority to build out a larger, fully functioning center for historic trades training; the new center will allow for the needed expansion, as the current demand for qualified individuals far outweighs those that have been trained. Preservation Maryland and NPS’ Historic Preservation Training Center, located in downtown Frederick, run the national workforce development program The Campaign for Historic Trades which works to expand and strengthen training and career opportunities in historic trades.
Attendees were able to see HPTC staff and trainees at work and learn more about the type of training and hands-on work that will expand as a result of the legislation and subsequent future increased footprint of a new training center. 
Senator Van Hollen, Rep. Trone, County Executive Fitzwater and Mayor O’Connor also delivered remarks and presented proclamations in honor of Preservation Month before the program concluded.
Learn more about The Campaign for Historic Trades
Analysis shows the need for a larger and better-trained historic trades workforce; 100,000 workers needed within the next decade
BALTIMORE (November 15, 2022) – Preservation Maryland and its national program, The Campaign for Historic Trades, today announced the completion of a first-of-its-kind labor study on the status of historic trades in America. The study is believed to be the most comprehensive survey ever prepared on the status of the traditional trades in the United States. While ample data exists for the construction industry as a whole, specific and consistent labor market statistics have not previously existed for the historic trades.
The Campaign for Historic Trades is a national workforce development program powered by the statewide non-profit Preservation Maryland in partnership with the National Park Service’s Historic Preservation Training Center. As part of its mission to identify and resolve systemic barriers to historic trades careers, The Campaign sought to define historic trades occupations and ascertain the current and future market need for trained tradespeople. With this new study, conducted by PlaceEconomics – a firm with decades of experience in the analysis of the economic impact of preservation – and the data it provides, the gap between the need for historic preservation trades workers and the trained hands to perform the work is estimated and forecasted for the first time in history.
“Quantifying the disconnect between the need for historic preservation trades workers and the trained hands to perform the work allows us to make the strong case for funding to support our bold initiative and, most importantly, create a larger and better-trained workforce to preserve historic places across the country,” explained Natalie Henshaw, Director of The Campaign for Historic Trades.
The portion of the construction industry that is focused on historic rehabilitation is large and growing. Heritage trades make up an estimated 12.6% of all building rehabilitation jobs. Both the number of buildings considered historic and the amount of money invested in their rehabilitation are on upward curves. But there is a serious shortage of workers who are trained and experienced in the historic preservation trades.
The rehabilitation of historic buildings is a labor-intensive activity, meaning a high share of the total expenditure goes to labor. These projects create more localized jobs compared to new construction activities.
“Historic preservation is not niche,” said Nicholas Redding, president and CEO of Preservation Maryland and The Campaign for Historic Trades. “It’s a major component of the nation’s construction industry and this study underscores the need for communities all across America to invest in the workforce that will sustain this growing, diverse, and significant component of the trades landscape.”