Carlos Mongalo, program director of the National Flooring Contractors Apprenticeship Program (NFCAP), is passionate about more than just filling job vacancies in the wood flooring industry. For him, it’s about building communities, nurturing young talent, and passing down skills to the next generation of flooring professionals. One recent project, however, took his dedication to a whole new level – a glow-in-the-dark flooring project that not only pushed creative boundaries, but also inspired his apprentices to dream big.
The unique project, housed at the Treasure Island Job Corps Center in San Francisco, California, was part of a larger initiative to provide both students and the community with a functional and eye-catching recreational space. Originally, the client requested a simple flooring replacement for their recreational room, thinking along the lines of standard carpet. However, Mongalo had another vision in mind.
“They asked us if we could replace the flooring in their recreational room and they were thinking of just using carpet,” Mongalo explains. “But I thought, why not take it up a notch and do something cool? I pitched them the idea of glow-in-the-dark wood flooring, and they loved it!”
Mongalo’s creative vision for the project wasn’t just about aesthetics. He saw an opportunity to engage his students in the process from start to finish, giving them hands-on experience in both creating and installing an innovative flooring solution.
“The size of the area was about 3,000 square feet,” Mongalo says. “This space is specifically for recreational use, where students can play pool, ping pong, and just hang out after school. So, it needed to be something fun, but also durable.”
The glow-in-the-dark flooring, branded under the Glowry Collection, used solid ash and engineered ash planks. “We used ash because it absorbs stain well and has this really cool grain effect after you sand it,” he notes. The flooring was treated with a fluorescent stain that glows in the dark when exposed to black light. “It’s a two-part effect,” Mongalo explains. “The fluorescent stain glows under black light, and the glow pigments charge up so that when the lights are off, the floor stays illuminated.”
For Mongalo, this project wasn’t just about creating a visually striking floor, but about giving his students a meaningful experience. “We have our own training facility on the campus, and this was a perfect opportunity for the students to get hands-on experience,” he shares. “We put two students in charge as foremen. They trained with me and also went through an NWFA class. They weren’t just learning how to install a floor; they were creating something from scratch.”
The project had its challenges. The first step was to remove the existing carpet, which had been glued to the concrete subfloor. After the carpet was torn out, they faced dealing with stubborn adhesive residue. “We had cement masons come out with their concrete grinder, but they couldn’t get all of the adhesive off,” Mongalo recalls. “That’s when a local rep stepped in with an amazing machine that we didn’t even know could grind concrete. It saved the project.”
Once the subfloor was prepped, Mongalo and his students installed the solid and engineered ash flooring using a glue-down method. The ash planks were 7 inches wide and 4 feet long, with a 1.5mm ash face. The students themselves applied the glow-in-the-dark stain, sanded the floors, and applied three coats of water-based polyurethane to give it a durable finish.
“The hardest part? Sanding 1,280 pieces by hand!” says Mongalo. “We had to hand-sand every single piece of flooring. It was grueling work, but it paid off in the end.”
In the end, the project was more than just a flooring installation – it was an experience that deeply impacted the students involved. “The foremen who led the project were so inspired by the process that they’re now thinking about becoming flooring contractors themselves,” explains Mongalo. “They don’t just want to be installers – they want to have their own companies one day. And seeing that passion come to life is what makes this job worth it.”
Mongalo sums it up perfectly: “It took me 10 years to get to where I am today, but these students are learning everything in less than a year. Seeing them create this floor from start to finish and watching them gain confidence and skills they can take with them into their careers – that’s what makes me feel like I’m fulfilling my purpose.”
Through the NFCAP, Mongalo is not only teaching students how to install floors – he’s giving them a foundation for a future in the flooring industry. “The mission is to plant that seed,” Mongalo says. “These students aren’t just learning a trade, they’re learning how to build a career.”
