high school cabinetry closing
James Mcgrew
I need your help
tuesday night i am going to speak at the board meeting for richland district two as the principle of richland northeast high school with one year of experience is moving to eliminate the auto and cabinetmaking programs and replace them with culinary arts at the high school level. this program has cnc machines and growth in students since its inception. any one in the columbia are...a who can attend i would appreciate it. this is not about any local area it is about all. this is about exposure to manufactiing and self made ingenuity, it includes signmaking, plastics, construction and the list goes on. if you could send me short emails on your thoughts, this will be graetly appreciated, i will submit them to the board
the students really need your help email to new2cnc@gmail.com
Industrial Arts inspired me
Regarding Industrial Arts education in schools:
I participated in metal and woodworking portions of industrial arts classes as I attended high school in the 80’s. After decades of different career moves, I never lost my appetite for the satisfaction of doing things for myself. My teacher, Phil O’Rourke instilled a great level of respect for the craft as well as the machinery. I was amazed to discover that he continues to teach wood shop classes in a town neighboring the high school I attended in Massachusetts. When seeing his name and contributions to the forum on Shop-Bot CNC’s, I was stunned, as I was considering and have since placed an order for my own machine. One day I’d like to email him directly, though I don’t expect he’ll recall me personally. I just find it amazing that the man continues to inspire kids and has embraced this latest form of technology . It took me several decades to enter into a woodworking career, but I can say I never forgot the foundation I learned in those classes. Just as I have discovered the importance of communication skills learned in English classes, mathematics, etc., those industrial arts classes have helped prepare me to grow into my passion for my current career. I received no degree, but was given an instinct for being self sufficient. I hope the latest generation of administrators does not discard this portion of education. I believe is essential to show kids that it really is OK to go to work and use your hands to do more than type and click a mouse – I’m crafting a very rewarding career thanks to those programs and especially those teachers who gave more to us kids than they may ever realize...
Sincerely,
Jeffrey T Roltgen
Roltgen’s Woodworks
jeff@roltgenswoodworks.com
www.roltgenswoodworks.com