The Floor Covering Education Foundation (FCEF) recently added a new corporate sponsor to their list of partners providing ongoing financial support. The Dixie Group (TDG) has recently donated their first $50,000 and will continue to support FCEF with financial contributions. 

“We are proud to be doing our part to help the industry recruit and train the next generation of flooring installers,” said Kennedy Frierson, VP, COO of The Dixie Group. “We understand the challenges our industry faces with a shortage of professional installers and want to be a part of the solution.”

The Floor Covering Industry Foundation depends on corporate sponsors and individual donors to fund scholarships, program development, and awareness campaigns. 

“Without the support of the entire industry, we won’t be able to make the large impact that is needed to really change the downward trend in flooring installation craftsmen,” said Jim Aaron, executive director of FCEF. “Financial commitments like the one from TDG help us focus on solutions, knowing we can take action.”

TDG joins many other suppliers and buying groups in making a commitment to support FCEF’s efforts to find effective solutions and quickly get programs in place to start regrowing the population of flooring installers. 

“We have a big awareness problem, and that’s not going to be fixed overnight,” Aaron said. “We have had some quick wins in the past year, but we still have an uphill battle ahead and we need all the support we can get.”

“One of our core values at The Dixie Group is that we are obsessed with making our customers more successful,” Frierson added. “Supporting FCEF is one way that we can do this. We know that our customers need qualified installers to be able to sell more flooring and have a successful future.”

The Floor Covering Education Foundation is actively growing training programs in technical colleges and within other groups across the nation. They’re also working to spread awareness among young people and those looking for new career opportunities. 

For more information, visit FCEF.org.

For more information about scholarships and programs, visit flooryourfuture.com.