They say you just can’t find good help these days. Mt. Hope High School is trying to change that narrative, as this marks the first year that they will have a fully accredited career and technical education (CTE) program for construction and architecture.

The coursework will include three consecutive, required construction courses that will run a gamut of essential knowledge for any aspiring contractor. Since the program (administered through the national Home Builders Institute) has been approved by the state, students will be able to acquire four certifications that will give them a head-start when looking to enter the workforce — such as how to safely utilize tools of the trade, a certificate for electrical work, a certificate for general construction, as well as a necessary OSHA certification to grant them access to a job site.

But even further than certifications, students that opt to take the fourth-year, senior level construction class will earn the chance to gain more than knowledge from a classroom — actual, hands-on experience working with a client and a boss, on a job, building something.

“Us being able to get our students out into the workforce is what we really want to do. We can do so much in the classroom but we can’t truly give them those real world experiences,” said Wayne Lima, Mt. Hope STEM Department Chair.

Lima said that since the feasibility of having students join in on the process of building a complete house is less than realistic in a housing market run amok, the program will focus on shed building instead.

“Shed building is that first option where they’re going to have to meet with people and do designs at that smaller scale,” Lima continued. “To be out in the actual workforce where they have an actual boss who is a contractor and they have to do whatever that job is, those are the things we can’t reproduce in the classroom.”

Any contractors need an extra set of hands?
Lima said that at the moment, the school is busy looking for any local contracting companies who would be willing to partner with them to provide a place for students in the program to practice what they have learned.

“We got the program up and running and now we’re going to need help for their senior year,” he said.

Lima said that, in the past, he had taken part in a prior version of the homebuilding program when it was offered at Bristol High School. He was hopeful that contractors who had a similar local connection to the school would be willing to step up and help build the pipeline from Mt. Hope to the professional world.

“We’re hoping people who have graduated from Bristol or Mt. Hope High School will give students a chance,” he said.

Nicole Lyons, Mt. Hope High School’s College and Career Coordinator, said that they were also seeking contractors and local business owners to become a part of the school’s CTE advisory board, which provides input and insights on industry activity to ensure the students are being taught the most current and applicable skills in their coursework.

Lyons believes the program will be mutually beneficial to students and professional contracting firms alike.

“Our local economy has a lot of contractors,” she said. “So with the high need for construction workers and contractors, this program will be a way to not only support the interests of our students, but also help grow our economy.”

Any contractors interested in partnering with Mt. Hope should contact Nicole Lyons (nicole.lyons@bwrsd.org) or Wayne Lima (wayne.lima@bwrsd.org).

Soft skills provide a strong foundation
To educators like Lima, the benefits of CTE programs — Mt. Hope now has three: this construction program, an engineering program, and a business/finance program — extend beyond whatever targeted skills the students learn in that program.

“Part of what we want to get them to do is be career ready,” Lima said. “The idea is for them to be able to communicate with the client and, knowing their needs, be able to come up with a plan and a design for the shed that person might want, and to be able to do the math skills involved in pricing everything out.”

Lyons added that, if the students want to instead pursue higher education rather than jump right into the workforce, transferrable credits are available through New England Tech to continue towards that path as well.

“CTE programs are great not only because they support student interests, but they also explore a deep exploration of an interest,” she said. “The broader level and the broader view of CTE programs is that you’re gaining employability skills that are transferrable.”

Lima said that Mt. Hope emphasizes three critical areas for learning — problem solving, critical thinking, and communication. Any CTE program, ideally, will teach these skills regardless of the trade that is being actively targeted, which he argued is the case for the new construction CTE program.

“This program works great for those three things,” he said. “If we can teach kids how to problem solve, how to think critically, and then communicate solutions for those problems effectively, regardless of what they choose to do, they’re going to be successful.”