Published on: October 5, 2026
At Charter Construction, we are always on the lookout for driven people who want to contribute to our team and grow with our family for the long haul. Over the years, that mindset has created a company filled with employees who have spent decades here, developing leaders from within and passing knowledge down to the next generation.
One of the ways Charter continues investing in future construction professionals is through its internship program. Several current employees started as interns before joining the team full-time after graduation.
Estimator Gage Wilson is a prime example of that pipeline in action.
The Journey from Classroom Desks to Office Desks
Gage’s interest in the built environment started back in high school during an AutoCAD design class. By his senior year, an internship program through his school connected him with Charter. Coincidentally, Steele Clifton, Charter’s VDC Manager, had gone through that exact same high school program years prior.
That connection turned into a two-year internship with Charter while Gage earned his construction management degree at Western Kentucky University. As an intern, Gage got a taste of multiple facets of the business, spending the vast majority of his time with Steele in our Virtual Design and Construction (VDC) department.
“I worked a lot with Steele during my internship,” Gage says. “He taught me a lot at the beginning. There was nothing I couldn’t ask that he wouldn’t help with.”
For college students currently hunting for the right internship, Gage offers some straightforward advice: “The expectation here is excellence. Take pride in hard work and be willing to go the extra mile.”
Learning the Ropes of Estimation and Construction
After graduating in 2024, Gage stepped seamlessly into his full-time role as an estimator, working under the guidance of Senior Estimator Justin Duke.
It’s a role that requires a massive amount of cross-department collaboration. To build an accurate estimate, Gage frequently syncs with the VDC team on the front end to visualize site constraints and catch potential structural hurdles before a bid ever goes out.
He laughs when recalling an old piece of industry wisdom passed down from Charter’s former CEO and Executive Chairman, Turner Talley: “There’s nuance to every job,” Gage recalled him saying. “If you price everything on a job, you’ll never get the job.”
Behind the joke is a lesson that stuck with him: pay attention to details, but never lose sight of the bigger picture. Charter is a fast-paced environment, but that’s exactly what Gage loves about it.
“The highs are really high, and the lows never last too long,” Gage explains. “You get to see some jobs progress over the course of two years, but if you don’t get a specific bid, there’s always a new opportunity right around the corner.”
One of the projects Gage takes the most pride in so far is the 865 Neyland Garage project in Knoxville, located next to Neyland Stadium. For someone early in his career, it was a major undertaking and an opportunity to learn from experienced people across the company.
“I took a lot of pride in that one,” he says. “It was a lot of fun working alongside people I don’t get to interact with every day and learning from their expertise.”
A Culture of Exceptional Craft
Because Gage has been with Charter since college, the company culture has set a high bar for his career.
“When you close your eyes and think about construction, society has this perception that it’s high-pressure and gritty,” Gage says. “But there’s a lot of high-level engineering and collaboration at Charter. I can’t think of a situation here where you’d ever feel isolated or alone. Honestly, the expectation is that everything is a collaborative effort.”
That collaboration extends beyond the office walls. One of Gage’s favorite aspects of the job is watching how respected Charter is among its peers. Seeing major GCs and industry partners genuinely excited about the innovative solutions Charter brings to the table validates his hard work.
“Getting to work alongside people who are truly exceptional at their craft gives me a lot of pride in being associated with Charter,” Gage shares.
For Gage, Charter has already become more than just the place where he started his career. It’s a place where he’s been challenged, supported, and trusted to grow. Like many employees before him, he’s building a foundation for a long future with the company.
