'This is our classroom': Franklin High School students learn on the job site

 

FRANKLIN, Wis. (CBS 58) -- New home construction's popping up all around the country, but the number of skilled tradespeople to build them is low. It's a shortage attributed to too many retirements and not enough people replacing them. What one local developer's doing to try to change that.

Hailey Savasta's part of a team of students working alongside professional home builders, today getting to help put a roof on a new home.

"Seeing the whole house come together is the best part, watching it from just a hole is just awesome," said Hailey Savasta, Franklin High School Senior.

Just three short weeks earlier, this was it. A ribbon cutting ceremony outside what was just a hole in the ground kicked off this home build for the upper-level Franklin High School construction class.

"We started off doing floor joists. We did the mudsill on the outside," said Savasta.

Savasta and 11 other students like Miranda Gantner start their school day on Parkview Lane just off Ryan Road Monday through Friday, rain or shine.

"It's nice finally having the walls up. You get a little bit of shade now (smiles) What's it like then leaving here and going to school the rest of the day? I'm glad we get extra time to shower (giggles)" said Gantner, Franklin High School Senior.

Students are doing all aspects of this 21-hundred square foot, four-bedroom home like sheathing, plumbing and electrical work.

"Building the exterior walls was pretty fun too because you get to put all the foam on and cut out all the openings," said Gantner.

"I picked out the siding, the door color and the cabinet color, the flooring, so I'm really excited to see how it all comes together," said Savasta.

This is the Cape Crossing subdivision. New homes here are going for around $600 thousand.

Andrew Mente brought the program to Franklin six years ago, partnering with Tim O'Brien Homes.

"These kids earn their way into the class by doing well in the first construction classes and then also showing an interest in the building trades," said Mente, Franklin High School's construction instructor.

This is the sixth home Mente's construction students have built in Franklin.

"So, they'll use every tool that a contractor uses nail guns, saws, drills, everything that it needed to build a house," said Mente.

"A number of our students think that okay I'm going to go into plumbing and then they get the electrical experience out here and they quickly find that that's a career opportunity they're more interested in and what an amazing benefit to know that when you're 17 or 18 years old versus out in the career field and now I'm trying to change careers mid-life," said Annalee Bennin, Franklin Public Schools Superintendent.

A win for students, but also for the industry which relies on skilled workers.

"There's a shortage of trade workers all across the country and this is a way to develop a pipeline right into it for the students that are interested," said Mente.

Mente's seeing that interest and fostering it, starting younger students on smaller projects in the classroom like tables.

"It really is awesome to see the students grow; you know from barely knowing how to swing a hammer to using nail guns on a roof it's really just a big growth experience for them" said Mente.

And this year notably, there's an increased interest from female students. Half of the 12 here are young ladies.

"I think I'll do something where I'm definitely working hands on and it's not necessarily sitting at a desk all day," said Gantner.

"I think it's a great thing. I think anybody could do it. I wish there were more women doing it right now we have six girls working together which is pretty cool," said Savasta.

"It's an outstanding opportunity for 12, but when you have about 16-hundred students in the school, you want to extend that opportunity for more students," said Bennin.

Franklin public schools will be going to referendum in November asking voters to financially support improvements that include an expansion of career and technical education spaces.

"It's a lot more cramped. Having this it's a lot more, it's a lot easier because you have space to move around," said Gantner.

"With the referendum, it would allow us to move it out of the basement into a more visible space and also right size it so that we have adequate space, we can reduce wait lists or eliminate them and give more students opportunities," said Bennin.

And opportunity is what this program's all about.

"This is our classroom. This is the best classroom I can give them where they're hands on actually building a full structure. No high school is gonna go deeper than we do and be able to see every aspect of a house build again from start all the way to finish when there's just a dirt lot to when a family is moving in," said Mente.

Andrew Mente says the quality work they're doing's getting them noticed. Many of his students will get apprenticeships even before they graduate high school.

"This is something you can come back and visit in many years, and you can, you know it's your work. It's pretty, it's just very, it feels good," said Savasta.