Tucked away on a residential street in Pine Island, a construction crew was recently working on a house. The floor was nothing more than a cement slab, and the walls were a collection of two-by-fours and plywood. Nonetheless, a passer-by could look at the project and imagine what the house might look like once complete.
What the casual observer might not imagine is that the construction crew was a group of high school students who were learning on the job. Their instructor, Ben Bauer, was with them, handing out instructions and suggestions as they hoisted trusses to form the roof of the garage.
It’s the first time – at least in recent history – that students at Pine Island have had the option to help build a home for a class. Pine Island High School Principal Mitch Schiltz said they started to consider adding the course due to the success of the district’s other industrial tech courses.
“Every step we went there was a lot of support, so it just kind of grew from there,” Schiltz said. “Our industrial tech numbers overall have been very strong over the last three or four years … we knew the numbers and interest were there.”
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Pine Island began establishing the class well before the pandemic forced schools to consider distance learning this past spring. Although the world of education took a major turn, Schiltz said support for starting the class remained strong.
The students come in small groups throughout the day, wearing masks as they work. Other than that, they simply carry on as they normally would, bringing the house a little closer to completion each day.
Once it’s done, the home will have two bedrooms, two baths, and just under 1,800 square feet.
“We’re trying right now to get it covered as fast as we can,” Bauer said. “And then we can be inside the rest of the time: doing windows, framing more walls, hanging Sheetrock, doing the flooring – lots of stuff.”
Junior Cooper Williams said he wanted to take the class because it’ll help prepare him for his career after high school. Senior Jack Swanson said he just likes the idea of being able to build and repair things on his own rather than having to hire other people for the job.
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Regardless of where the students plan to take their newfound skills after high school, Schiltz said he's excited to have a new class that is so direct in it's application of those skills.
“Whether I’m sitting in a meeting with a kid that’s a freshman or talking with a senior, we continue to remind them: our goal is to prepare you for your next step in life and give you as many options as possible,” Schiltz said. “That’s our goal.”
