Field trip: Working on a building, working on minds

Details: Lance Martin; News; 15 October 2024; 575

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As construction on the new Eastman Academy K-8 school on Highway 48 continues, Halifax County Schools Superintendent Eric Cunningham used the activity as a way to build the minds of fifth-graders and give them a project of their own.

Today was designated as a field trip for the county’s fifth-graders as they learned from members of the Bordeaux Construction team about the essentials of construction — today rebar, masonry and exterior masonry walls.

Alex Herndon, project manager for the new school that is replacing the former Eastman, has done these field trips before. “My last job we did a K-8 down in Tar Heel and we did a field trip similar to this. The kids really enjoy it. They really get to see their community come alive with new building.”

The students are brought out at the beginning so they can see the building coming out of the ground, Herndon said. “Typically, we’ll have another one once we get in the finishing stage. In that one we’ll try to line it up to where we have a plumber to show them how to solder pipe together. That’s kind of the plan for this one is to have them here at the beginning, another one at the rough-in, and have them again at the final opening.”

These kinds of field trips show the students opportunities, Herndon said. “It shows them what they’re learning in school is going to be actually applied some day for a trade or something in the field. I think it sparks excitement for them.”

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As students from Everetts Elementary finished their tour, Cunningham told them this was a STEM challenge. “You’re going to go back to your classrooms and you’re going to build something for Doc C.”

Holding a bag labeled junior contractors, Cunningham told the students, “With the information you learned today about right angles and 45-degree angles, you’re going to construct something with the materials here. Each one of you will be required to build something that we can display proudly and show everyone.”

With the project, the superintendent told the students they will start with X. “First you have to ask yourself a question. Then you have to imagine. Then you have to plan and then you have to create. Then you have to test and then you improve.”

It’s all a part of the building process, he said. In the bag was measuring tape, a cardboard base, a notepad to draw a design. “You have to plan. You can’t just get to work. You have to start first with a plan. This is where you put down your imagination and your plan.”

Then inside the bag was a miniature level. “In your bag you have everything that you need to build me a structure.”

The goal, Cunningham said, was to show the students “all the wonderful jobs that are available to them. But they also learned the soft skills. We have rigor but we also have relevance. They’re now seeing why it’s important for them to learn reading, mathematics and then to make it relevant in the workplace. We’re just trying to bring it all together in Halifax County Schools.”

He said he is pleased with the construction progress on the new school. “It’s actually amazing. I’m actually breathless because in 2009 when the school closed and then in 2016-17 when they began the dream of rebuilding and all the way to the needs-based grant, so many things had to fall in place. I can only be grateful — grateful for our children, grateful for a much brighter future for our kids.”

Cunningham said there was a reason why he wanted all of the fifth graders to see the construction process. “We seem to lose our kids right around middle school in construction trades. They become disenchanted, disillusioned. What we want to do is recapture their minds and imaginations to see this is a viable alternative.”

The school system is re-equipping its CTE program, the superintendent said. “We now have culinary arts. We’re adding electrical. We’ve added HVAC and we have health sciences. We’re bringing in all the trades so that one day we can be a supplier of the workforce for jobs like this in Halifax County.”

Cunningham said the school system is going to continue to expand these offerings. “Right now I need a building tradesman and a plumber. If I can find those I’ll add those to the CTE program.”

Students interested in welding can enroll through Halifax Community College. “We like feeding the community college. We like to give them opportunities at the school and in the academy type format.”

School board member Joyce Lashley said, “I think it’s an absolutely wonderful opportunity for our students to see things they’ve never seen before and to be a part of something that will be a benefit for them. I think it’s given them so much pride.”