Thoma Staff As Students And Teachers

As part of our work at Thoma, one of our individual job responsibilities is to continue our education in the fields in which we consult. Conversely, we sometimes serve as teachers in assisting contractors in achieving a greater understanding of a particular issue or for certification purposes.

Thoma Rehabilitation Assistant, Matt Gross, one of Thoma’s newest employees, has been busy this past year attending various work-related seminars. Early in the year, Matt traveled to Williamsport, PA to attend Series 200 and 300 Mold Inspection Training courses over a two-day period. Matt’s attendance at the conference and successful passing of two exams allows him to perform mold inspections and tests for toxic and non-toxic molds and to identify conditions that could foster mold growth.

In June, both Matt and Nate Thoma attended a one-day conference in Buffalo. Nate is our senior consultant’s son and works part time with us while attending college. Through participation at the conference and passing a required exam, attendees were certified to perform clearance tests for lead based paint (LBP). This testing is done after a contractor has completed rehabilitation work on a home where we initially tested for LBP. Addressing LBP is a requirement of both the Community Development Block Grant and HOME Programs.

More recently, Matt has been taking a residential wiring course offered through the local BOCES program. This course will broaden Matt’s knowledge of a home’s electrical system, enabling him to better spot deficiencies in a home’s wiring. Matt’s capabilities in performing home inspections have improved as a result of the course, and, additionally, Matt is better able to address code issues related to residential wiring.

In assuming the role of teacher, it should be noted that both of our Rehabilitation Managers, Tim Alger and Phil Connery, are certified through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as Certified Risk Assessors for lead based paint. This means they are trained in LBP interim controls which satisfies any work for HUD-sponsored programs such as the CDBG and HOME Programs. Tim additionally became certified during a “Train the Trainer” course at SUNY Buffalo. This course trains contractors and landlords on how to clean, perform maintenance, and make repairs to homes containing LBP while protecting the homeowner and themselves from lead poisoning. Thoma serves as sponsor for LBP certification courses with Tim as the instructor for contractors wishing to be certified for the CDBG and HOME rehabilitation programs. Participation in this course allows a contractor to become certified in inspecting for lead hazards and being able to define the scope of work needed to address LBP properly.

This LBP course takes approximately six hours of time and can easily be completed in one day. While some of our communities have a number of contractors in the geographic area HUD-certified to address lead paint, some of our municipalities only have a few. This has presented a challenge for some communities in getting their housing rehabilitation grants completed in a timely fashion.

Thoma continues to encourage contractors to become LBP certified. We encourage all readers of Thoma’s Developments to spread the word that we are willing to sponsor these instructional programs to increase the available pool of contractors.