NAHB Student Competition Success Shows Residential Construction Future is Bright

Workforce Development Published Mar 02, 2026 Contact: Sarah Weber[email protected]Senior Director, Workforce Development & Student Chapters(202) 266-8654 Share: Eighty-five teams competed in the Student Competitions at the 2026 IBS in Orlando. The winners were honored at the annual Awards Ceremony. The Raleigh-Wake County Student Chapter won first place in the Construction Management competition for Secondary Programs. The Kennesaw State University Student Chapter won first place in the Four-Year & Graduate Programs: Custom/Small Home Builder competition. The 2026 International Builders’ Show saw nearly 75,000 builders, remodelers, developers and other home building professionals race through the halls of the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. Students attending the show took advantage of the industry-leading education and networking opportunities available, as well as the expansive show floor to learn about the latest and greatest in building. But the spotlight was on the prestigious NAHB Student Competition they’d spent the last few months preparing for. For two days at the show, aspiring home builders, land developers, designers and project managers from NAHB Student Chapters across the country presented thorough building proposals and fielded tough questions from an audience of construction company executives. "We chose to build a lakefront lot that offered more of a bang for our buck," said Matthew Genereau, vice president of the Student Chapter at North Dako...