By their fourth and final year, students are building a modular house. All students in the Building Trades program also participate in Skills USA-VICA s Professional Development program, which teaches employability skills such as goal setting and career planning. Thanks to ongoing financial support from the local building industry and business community, Building Trades has acquired some valuable resources. There are also computers, printers, scanners and a digital camera. Classroom lectures are supplemented by demonstrations, group activities and construction videos.
Students have more pride in their work if they know the project is something real.
Anderson also periodically organizes field trips to area businesses and contractors. The award-winning teacher discovered his true calling when he was a paratrooper and educator in the U.S. Army. He is a licensed electrician and contractor, and was once a supervisor for a modular home builder in Dublin. Anderson received a Bachelor of Science degree in education from Virginia Tech in 1996 while working full-time as a master electrician. My new goal is to take seed money, buy a tract of land, subdivide it and start building houses with student help.