New Storage Shed Provides Senior Brady Durni and Classmates With Valuable Work Experience
Mr. Nicholas Berthelon, Blake Johnson, Connor Cockcroft, Brady Durni and Mr. Mike Johnson stand in front of the new student designed and built MS recess storage shed in Belleville. Photo courtesy of Wildcat Manufacturing
Educators believe in the importance of teaching their students life-long learning skills but for Brady Durni, his senior year has provided him with more than the usual classroom experience. For Durni, he got to put the cumulative skills he’s learned in Tech Ed to the test by taking the lead on a large-scale construction project in Mr. Nicholas Berthelon’s classroom as part of the Wildcat Manufacturing program.
Last fall students involved in the student-run Wildcat Manufacturing business that custom-makes “almost anything you need”, according to their website at https://wildcatmanufacturing.com, was approached by Belleville’s Middle and High School Assistant Principal Kyle Loshaw about building a new storage shed to replace the older one used by the middle school during recess. He thought it would present an excellent opportunity for students to utilize their knowledge of design and building in a functional manner that would simultaneously improve the facilities for the Belleville Middle School students. Durni was tasked with designing the shed and providing a materials list and plan for completion. By November, the project was underway with fellow Wildcat Manufacturing students Connor Cockroft and Blake Johnson building alongside Durni.
Berthelon notes, “They did about 99% of the work, with the project being almost entirely student-run. The most I did was to pick up the materials needed. Other than that, I mostly offered my advice based on my previous experience in construction.”
Nicholas Berthelon is incredibly proud of his students and the opportunities the in-house manufacturing business offers – especially this one! Brady, Connor, and Blake worked diligently on building the storage shed from Durni’s vision, which took 3.5 months to complete. Taking on a larger scale project like this was much different from the plaques and smaller orders that normally are presented to the students. Brady responded eagerly to the challenge and was excited to engage in all aspects of the project, but time constraints of the classroom posed an additional set of limitations that the group needed to overcome.
Brady says, “I think the hardest part about the project was we only had a little over an hour every day to work on it – once we’d finally get going, class would almost be over.”
Despite time constraints, these three students pushed through, and slowly and steadily the shed took shape over the winter in the Tech Ed shop with the students taking great pride in their work. Getting to be in charge of a project like this one from design to finish is an incredible opportunity for any student hoping to pursue a future career in carpentry and construction. It’s about learning to take an order from a customer all the way from a conversation to reality and troubleshoot the hiccups along the way. That’s real-world life experience right in the classroom, and it’s great to get that opportunity before graduation when you still have the support of a caring and knowledgeable teacher to help mentor you as a student.
“I think it has improved my knowledge as well as my confidence in doing things while at work,” emphasizes Durni.
Taking advantage of the early spring Wisconsin weather, the new recess storage shed found its home in early March on the middle school grounds, helped by the assistance of 7-12 Head Custodian Mike Johnson. Johnson used a tractor to move the new shed from its original location in the Tech Ed shop to its permanent place for middle school use. The new shed boasts beautiful cedar siding and ample storage for recess equipment.
