Associated Builders and Contractors' (ABC) educational affiliate, the Trimmer Education Foundation, named four teams from colleges and universities nationwide as 2008 Student Essay Competition Winners. The award-winning teams were recognized at a ceremony held during the 2008 ABC National Convention in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

"This is the fourth year we have held this competition, and we are very proud of the unique benefits it offers our student members," said Kirk Pickerel, ABC president and CEO. "The Trimmer Education Foundation recognizes the increasing importance of written communications for the construction professional. This competition gives students the opportunity to have a paper 'blind-reviewed' and judged by industry members. The topic is of their choosing and is one that is pertinent to today's construction industry." The four winning schools and topics were:

University of Wisconsin-Stout

"Functional Capacity Evaluation and How it Relates to the Construction Industry" — Author: Chad Pingel

University of Cincinnati

"Self-Consolidating Concrete and the Effect on Construction Productivity" — Author: Nicholas Talkers

Pennsylvania College of Technology

"Combating the Construction Workforce Shortage" — Author: Katie E. Chearney

Louisiana State University

"Addressing the Labor Shortage in the Construction Industry" — Authors: Michael P. Holmes and Nathan T. Hunter

"The foundation is committed to supporting construction education in a variety of ways. We applaud the students' efforts in their writing, and hope this adds to their development as they prepare to enter the construction industry," Pickerel said.

Each team in the contest was responsible for independently researching, writing and editing its essay. The award-winning teams received cash prizes.