Build Montana has a strong trades-based education foundation, but several challenges have limited its ability to expand and deepen its impact across Montana. Identifying the need for stronger highway construction training to complement its existing offerings in vertical construction and general industry readiness, Build Montana saw a gap in trades education within the heavy civil construction sector. With 73,000 miles of roadways and a lack of accessible resources related to heavy civil construction education, there was an opportunity for Build Montana to expand its curriculum within this sector.

In addition, with only a few students across the nearly 150,000 square miles of the state, it was not feasible to gather the students in one central location for targeted training within this sector.

As workforce needs continued to evolve, the existing program needed to support broader trade exposure while staying aligned with Montana employers. Therefore, school districts across Montana were seeking content within the heavy civil construction industry–an industry with great need for workers but without robust educational support.

While Build Montana serves students effectively in its existing districts, scaling to more schools required a more flexible and sustainable training structure to expand its reach, which is the ultimate goal.

CAHill and aQuiRe Construction Academy provide heavy civil construction education with a mission to make trades-based training available to everyone, everywhere. Our programs create clear pathways into the construction trades through employer-aligned, skills-based instruction and industry-driven job readiness. We support workforce development through certified pre-apprenticeship programming, strong industry relationships, and training models designed to prepare participants for real job site success.

aQuiRe Construction Academy reflects that same mission through accelerated hybrid training built around hands-on instruction and digital learning. The model includes a large library of stackable micro-credential modules and training led by Subject Matter Experts. Participants gain certifications and skills in areas such as OSHA 10, Aerial Lift, Forklift, Work Zone Traffic Control and Flagger, Scaffolding, Generators and Pumps, Machine Operations and System Checks, Construction Math, and Construction Safety. In addition to technical training, the academy emphasizes dependability, industry awareness, and career empowerment.

Our approach is shaped by strong employer and union alignment. Through direct-entry relationships and broad workforce partnerships, we focus on preparing job-ready candidates who understand industry expectations and can move confidently into construction careers. This model supports both access and readiness, helping participants connect training to employment opportunities in a practical and measurable way.

Upon integrating CAHill’s aQuiRe Construction Academy curriculum, Build Montana successfully expanded its curriculum to include heavy civil and highway construction education and addressed a critical content gap that existed in Montana schools’ trades-based curriculum.

With students having access to aQuiRe Construction Academy as a digital platform, CAHill helped Build Montana overcome their geographic challenges. By combining online coursework with localized hands-on training—facilitated by instructors through local employers—the program proved scalable and flexible while also ensuring accessibility for students, ease for instructors, and relevance for employers.

At the conclusion of this program, Build Montana successfully graduated 22 students across six school districts. These students are now better prepared for real-world job site expectations and received valuable networking opportunities with Montana employers, as well as gaining a clearer understanding of potential career possibilities in the construction industry. This educational preparation supports students’ long-term success in construction careers, supports workforce development within the construction sector, and helps fill a critical workforce labor gap by strengthening and reinforcing the workforce that supports the state’s construction industry.

For the future, Build Montana plans to scale this partnership program to additional school districts, broadening access to construction career pathways for high school students and allowing students to make more informed career decisions, all while remaining aligned with employer and industry needs.

When it comes to Hailee's role specifically, she’s seen many benefits from using the aQuiRe Construction Academy platform. The app has helped her oversee program instructors in each school district, giving more autonomy to instructors and students, making her job more efficient. Instead of managing all  individual student accounts, Hailee is able to put the power into instructors' hands through single-access-point management: our Business Admin portal. This is where student account management, assignments, and progress can be tracked.

Get in touch, see our platform in action, and let us show you what makes aQuiRe Construction Academy the construction industry’s top choice for workforce development.