Randall Academy: An OCPS Alternative Education School in Apopka that means business
March 18, 2025
Joshua Garcia was struggling at Apopka High School.
"I didn't have the best grades," he said. "My attendance wasn't good."
Garcia, like many students in Apopka and Orange County, needed a different experience from school than the usual path from elementary to middle to high school and finally college.
That's when Jeffrey Condello stepped into the gap.
Condello, the owner and founder of Randall, a construction business in Apopka, took a different path than traditional school.
"I went to vocational school while I was in high school for plumbing," he said. "I rode on a bus for 30 minutes to get there. I learned a lot about the plumbing trade. I went to work for a one-truck plumbing contractor when I was 19 years old. I told him, ‘You don't have to pay me; just answer my questions’. He paid me $2.75 per hour, and I kept him in his office every night for four hours, six days a week for six months, and I was ready to go on my own. We became good friends, and I went into my own business when I was 21."
His ’ready to go’ and perseverance turned Randall into the leading self-performing construction business in Florida and the southeast since 1986, according to its website.
With over 400 employees, seven companies, and 35+ years in operation, Randall is considered an established, reliable, and trusted construction partner. Randall's services and products are delivered through its 100,000-square-foot fabrication facility on a 25-acre facility in Apopka.
Despite the time, effort, and responsibilities it takes to run a company this size, Condello still wanted to give back to his community and help the next generation of construction professionals get their start.
His past as a struggling student pointed him forward. His experience became his segue to impacting other students’ lives who need the kind of support he received.
Condello began supporting programs that help students thrive in alternative learning environments. One such initiative offered by Orange County Public Schools is known as Alternate Education. It's a broad range of schools ranging from residential to school-to-work programs, all designed for students who would benefit from non-traditional school settings.
At school-to-work sites, students spend a half day at school and a half day learning job skills while earning income and academic credits. By partnering with businesses and agencies, students experience a unique school environment where they can earn a high school diploma and discover long-term career opportunities.
These types of students fit Condello's vision of how he wanted to make a difference, and so, in 2021, he started Randall Academy.
According to its website, Randall Academy is a partnership between Orange County Public School's School-to-Work program and Randall Construction, which provides an alternative approach to traditional high school. Randall Academy is on the main campus of Randall Construction, where students work alongside the employees, gaining valuable work experience and pay. The face-to-face instruction in a smaller setting, combined with a robust mentoring program, guides students seeking a unique alternative setting with an engineering foundation.
"We are providing our youth with an alternative career path from college to get into the construction trades and learn and make money," said Condello. "It is my view that many students should not go to college. Too many are peer pressured into going by their friends, parents, and bad advice from society."
Orange County Board Member Melissa Byrd from District 7, which represents Apopka, sees the value of this approach and is pleased with the partnership.
"Randall Academy is a great example of collaboration and community support coming together to increase opportunities for our students. We are so incredibly grateful for the partnership we have with Randall and for their willingness to take an active role in shaping and training tomorrow's skilled workforce. Their dedication to their industry and community is an example for all local businesses, and we welcome more partnerships like this one."
Kacheena Trudeau, the Lead Teacher at Randall Academy, wants the students to treat their experience like a real business.
"When you're coming here, you're coming to work," she said. "When you walk in the door, this is your job. Your job is to get an education, and your job is to come in and be professional and be part of the team, because a lot of people are here putting their time, energy, and money into making a program like this work.”
She points out the teacher-to-student ratio as a primary advantage at Randall.
"If we consider a traditional high school with class sizes between 25 and 40, depending on the subject, with one teacher, and then you look at our school, and our cap right now (for the entire school enrollment) is 25, and we've got five teachers."
Condello's journey from a teenage plumber to the founder of a thriving construction business is a testament to hard work, perseverance, and a commitment to giving back. Through Randall Academy, he is shaping the next generation of skilled workers, providing them with an education and a future. His vision extends beyond building structures—it's about building lives.
And although Condello wants to give back to his community and industry, how people remember him is not his focus.
"I don't really think about a legacy," he said. "I have always believed I have an obligation from God to get the most out of my skills, talents, and efforts and do the best I can while in this life."
That belief is making a lasting impact on the students at Randall Academy and the Apopka community as a whole.
For Garcia, now a Randall Academy senior, this program raised his grades and ignited his career path.
"Once I transferred here, they get on you," Garcia said. "They want you to do good. Since last year, I've had straight A's."
He is also experiencing the advantages of smaller class sizes.
"The teachers really do care about you... because of the smaller classes, they get to talk to you, sit down with you, and see what you want. They want you to keep growing as a person."
And the hands-on training Garcia receives on the job at Randall has been priceless as he pursues his career.
"My coworkers don't mind teaching me, and that's what I like. They're not like, 'Oh, he's just a little kid'. They want me to learn and be better."
Learn more about Randall Academy and ways to support Alternative Education through Orange County Public Schools. Making a difference can start today.
