A week before school began in August, Roswell High Principal LaToya Miley learned that the construction teacher was retiring. “We found ourselves in a unique situation,” she said.
One of the program’s key elements is partnerships with local industry experts. And when those partners heard of the school’s situation, they stepped in to fill the void.
“They reached out and presented the idea of having partners come in,” said Miley. “Initially, I wondered what that would look like. But it sounded very innovative.”
Zach Fields, vice president with the Construction Ready nonprofit that supports construction curriculum in classes across the state, saw the vacancy as an opportunity.
“The first week of school, they had subs, and students weren’t able to do hands-on work,” said Fields, who has an extensive construction background. “People without experience can lead the program with training, but there was no time to do that. So the second week, I stepped in to stabilize the program and provide a positive experience. I volunteered to get the program through the school year, and so far, we’ve made it work.”
Fields also had an edge: Before working for the nonprofit, he taught the class at Roswell for almost 10 years. Both those jobs helped him develop a strong network of partners that he called upon.
“Industry support has been key,” he said. “We’ve got stakeholders in the classroom assisting and leading projects and telling students about career paths. We’ve had contractors. We’ve had a building superintendent who finished a $35 million Kroger project on a Friday and came in the next week for the full week. Bringing in partners can enhance the experience and really let students know what their options are.”
Roswell has 100 students from freshmen through seniors in the program that meets daily. Introductory courses are focused on job site safety, using hand power tools and communication. Students move into classes around carpentry, electrical, plumbing and masonry and HVAC. Additionally, Roswell is one of first schools in the state to have a feeder program.
“This goes all the way down to second grade,” said Fields. “Students at Mountain Park take construction every year. We have students at Crabapple Middle and Elkins Point Middle learning how to run tools, wire electrical outlets, do basic plumbing projects and more. It’s a way for every kid to experience building and making something, and to become aware of the job opportunities. And then they’re feeding into Roswell.”
Having industry experts in the high school has been a help to those partners as well, said Fields. “It’s gotten us closer to understanding the students. Now we have a chance to get feedback every week from them.”
Principal Miley said the program is working well. “Our retention is up,” she said. “Typically, when parents know there’s a vacancy or a transition, they’ll ask for schedule changes. But that isn’t happening.”
The model might have lessons for construction programs across the state, said Fields.
“We’re viewing this as a little bit of an experiment to see if the teacher/facilitator model is sustainable and if we can create content to help other teachers,” he said. “We haven’t finished the story yet.”
Information on Roswell High is online at fultonschools.org/Roswellhs.
SEND US YOUR STORIES. Each week we look at programs, projects and successful endeavors at area schools, from pre-K to grad school. To suggest a story, contact H.M. Cauley at hm_cauley@yahoo.com or 770-744-3042.
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