While the new Sherwood High School was being constructed, Career and Technical Education (CTE) teachers opted to take advantage of an ideal opportunity.

General contractor Skanska USA Building, electrical subcontractor Rosendin Electric and other parties that worked on the $147 million project cooperated with school staffers to devise a series of lessons for students to learn more about the construction industry and the skilled trades. Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Skanska worked closely with some high school construction management interns. Then, even after the pandemic shut down in-person instruction, CTE teachers Allison Meadows and Jon Dickover pursued more involvement for their pupils.

“I think that one of the requests that our school district had of Skanska was that they somehow involve students, and that helped grease the wheels for what we did a little bit,” Dickover said. “It helped that Rosendin and Tim (Moore, Northwest operations manager) had a clear vision of how they really wanted to help, so that was easy.”

Students enrolled in Sherwood’s CTE program can choose welding, woodworking and basic construction courses. With in-person classes cancelled for much of the 2020-21 school year, Dickover and Meadows asked subcontractors to provide virtual lessons in a wide variety of topics touching on the skilled trades and the wider industry. Firms obliged via Zoom and students then applied that instruction to their coursework assigned by teachers.

“Students sign up for CTE courses because they are hands-on-minded kids,” Meadows said. “We were thinking ‘How can we make this really relevant for them?’”

CTE students typically “hate sitting in front of a computer,” she added.

“We could have taught them out of a book, but that’s not how our students want to learn,” she said. “So, we structured it so we had as many speakers from different industries and as many professionals as possible come in. Students would see as many as four different speakers during the week and have a reflection about it on day five, and also have Q and A during those sessions.”

Other firms that took part and offered virtual lessons included BRIC Architecture (designer of the 353,000-square-foot facility), Anning-Johnson Company, Apollo Mechanical Contractors, Coffman Excavation, Dennis’ 7 Dees Landscaping, and Sowles Company. Additionally, representatives from Ironworkers Local 29, the Pacific Northwest Regional Council of Carpenters, the Sheet Metal Institute and Sheet Metal Workers Local 16, and UA Local 290 Plumbers and Steamfitters participated.

“All of these opportunities have been great in not only educating students, but their parents as well,” Rosendin Business Development Manager Courtney Hron said. “We find that a lot of parents weren’t ever told about the trades growing up, so they are more likely to also push the college path to their children. But programs like this have really helped open their eyes.”

It helped that Sherwood High School had a preexisting relationship with Rosendin. In past school years, students have visited the company’s Hillsboro office and shop.

“I think for years we wanted to do this,” Meadows said. “Jon (Dickover) and Tim (Moore) went round and round with multiple stakeholders about how this could be a dream program, but we couldn’t figure out how to solve it. We’ve all been talking about serving students in that way and this happened to be the prime time to drop it.”

A previous collaboration between Rosendin and the Sherwood School District led to construction of a concessions trailer for the high school softball program, Moore said.

“It was really fun, and we were just getting ready to frame it and COVID hit,” he said. “That was going to involve most of the trades, and the kids were really excited about it. What excites me is what we might be able to build in this trades class with the kids and give back at the same time.”

Now, with students on the brink of returning to in-person classes, the future of CTE education at Sherwood High School is brighter than ever.

“I think it’s more exciting to think about how this will impact our programs for future years and if it drives more students into that area as a result of sheer exposure to the trades,” Meadows said.

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Paul Manosky, a welding instructor at Fort Vancouver High School in Vancouver, Washington, has long heard about the shortage of skilled tradespeople affecting the building industry.

“Everybody’s been barking about the skills gap for years, but now it’s finally a case of when push comes to shove,” he said. “When the new semesters start, these companies want to come in because they need people. I tried telling some of my kids (they) are the only ones who know how to do anything anymore, and people want that. And on top of that, (they’re) problem solvers.”

Manosky’s welding course is a part of Vancouver Public Schools‘ Industrial and Engineering Systems career pathway offered at both Fort Vancouver and Hudson’s Bay high schools. The most comprehensive programs are based at the latter school. There, the ACES (Architecture, Construction and Environmental Services) magnet program offers students a wide variety of career pathways – some more comprehensive than anything currently offered elsewhere in the Portland-metro area.

“The word really hasn’t gotten out; this is only the second year of this program,” said Mark Wreath, the district’s director of CTE education. “So once we get into the third year and we start to see kids transition into the apprenticeship programs, then it’s going to get some buzz.”

The latest program introduced at Hudson’s Bay is also the school’s most direct path yet into the workforce. It involves a partnership between the school district and Columbia River Carpenters Local 1503, a union that represents carpenters in Oregon and Southwest Washington, Wreath said.

“So at the end of three years our students that complete all three years are going to get expedited entry into their apprenticeship program,” he said. “So, to me that’s a home run; that’s a transition through a sequence of courses that leads straight to employment.”

The first year is dedicated to teaching students a plethora of different trades and skills they will need to succeed in the construction industry. From using tools to reading blueprints and plans to working with a team, participants are given a base to build on.

From there, those students who choose to continue into a second year can narrow down potential career paths and start specializing. At this point, the program’s third year will be uncharted territory for students and teachers alike.

For some students, the next step is a straightforward journey into the union and a carpentry career. For others, however, it’s translating the new skills and knowledge into a different career. “I wanted to learn trades and have a really big base for when I want to become an architect,” said Jordan McHan-Pack, a junior at Hudson’s Bay. “It’ll just be easier. And then Pierce said there is the apprenticeship for carpentry and I was like ‘that will help a lot with architecture too.’”

“Pierce” is carpentry instructor Aaron Pierce, who also is a state-certified welder. He is looking forward to seeing how the third year comes together, he said.

“For the second year we’re looking to get to the point where they can follow a blueprint and create something a little bit bigger than what they’ve done,” he said. “The hope is that by the end of this year they’re making bigger things – picnic tables, children’s play structures. So by no later than end of first quarter next year they will be doing sheds and have all the skills necessary to move into the third book and start to be able to (do) everything you would do on a house or everything you would do on a construction site as far as carpentry would go.”

While the curriculum skews toward commercial carpentry, with its steel framing, the essential skills learned can be applied in residential work as well, Pierce said.

“Down the line I think it’s going to be huge because they will be able to go from high school straight into the apprenticeship program,” he said. “And they won’t feel like they’re behind, because the carpentry curriculum (is) what they’re already looking for.”

At Fort Vancouver High School, senior welding student CJ McCombs doesn’t necessarily intend to pursue a career in the trades – his real passion is computer programming. But the course has provided a strong amount of general education, he said.

“It’s always felt like more of a learn-to-work-in-a-shop-environment type of class,” he said. “So for anyone who wants to get into industry, this is a great class to take. You’ll learn basic stuff, you’ll learn welding, you learn machine safety, just general safety practice, soft skills, and what to expect from this environment in the career path.”

The biggest advantage, Manosky added, is the direct transition from school to career that comes with affiliating with a union or other training center connected with the building industry. And beyond carpentry, Wreath said the district hopes to pursue additional apprenticeship connections with Local 1503 and the Pacific Northwest Carpenters Institute that involve the welding and millwright trades.

“The biggest thing is they’d have that transition, where you’d have a kid ready to work,” Manosky said. “At the end of the day, I’m a teacher; I don’t work in industry. But if they can come in and tell me what they want me to emphasize or what to push for, then that’s all the better. It’s about being ready to work, but I don’t know what that really means until someone else tells me.”

“We’re preparing them for life (beyond) high school,” Wreath added. “But we’re giving them a leg up.”

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All scopes of work are open for bidding as part of an extensive renovation and expansion project at South Albany High School.

General contractor Gerding Builders is seeking sub-bids for the work, which will provide new instructional space in the existing gymnasium building, new Career Technical Education (CTE) classrooms and a large multipurpose space able to accommodate both physical education and CTE lessons. According to Greater Albany Public Schools, crews also will improve the existing gymnasium’s lobby and restrooms as well as construct a new auxiliary gymnasium.

Further, the school’s Building 4 will be transformed into modern CTE space with the additions of two classrooms and technology. Also, Building 4 will gain a new maker lab, a new fabrication lab, a new computer lab, metals lab renovations, and a covered courtyard for construction projects.

Finally, Building 8 will receive interior upgrades to better suit performing arts.

While this project is being paid for with money from a 2017 bond measure, the work being done also is addressing damage done in 2015 when an arsonist caused substantial damage to the cafeteria, kitchen and other parts of campus.

Bidding remains open until 2 p.m. on Nov. 13.

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With a proposed corporate sales tax dominating discussion in Oregon, another November ballot measure is nearly flying under the radar.

Measure 98, the former Initiative Petition 65, would dedicate new revenue to three areas in high school education policy – dropout prevention, college readiness and career technical education (CTE). With broad aims, the measure has broad support. Both the Sierra Club and the Asphalt Pavers Association have endorsed it, according to a spokesman for the measure. It also has the support of the building industry, which for years has warned of a coming shortage of construction workers.

Supporters have raised millions and are confident about the measure’s chances. But a handful of opponents aim to make it a fight. They call the measure budgeting by ballot, and an unfunded mandate.

Pat Eck of Parents Across America-Oregon says Measure 98 “scares the bejesus out of” him.

“It has a veneer of legitimacy, but if you start scratching through that veneer a little bit, all of a sudden, some major concerns come out,” he said. “It’s the wrong way to do the right thing.”

Breaking the cycle

Political consultant Tim Nesbitt said he watched the 2015 legislative session with dismay. Little new money was going to K-12 education and it looked unlikely that pilot projects would be established to address several major, longstanding education issues.

In the spring, Nesbitt met with board members of Stand for Children, a national nonprofit, to discuss a possible ballot measure.

“We felt that we needed to do more,” he said. “We were going to end up with another small amount of money in the budget for pilot projects, when what we needed is to get these initiatives to scale in our high schools.”

A group including lawyer Greg Chaimov and the director of the Latino Network of Oregon, Carmen Rubio, worked through about 25 drafts of the ballot language.

As written, the measure would skim about 15 percent of new revenues, for a total of about $147 million per year, according to a revenue forecast by ECONorthwest. The state would administer a grant program where districts could apply for money to develop their own programs. Districts would get about $800 per student, based on each district’s weighted average daily membership.

There’s never been a ballot measure of this kind in Oregon, though there have been unsuccessful legislative proposals with similar goals to Measure 98. Former Gov. John Kitzhaber’s final budget before leaving office contained similar funding for CTE and STEM programs. The measure’s three aims have been addressed before through pilot programs and one-time competitive grant funding. But none were able to succeed without stable funding, Nesbitt said. He called it the “pilot project syndrome.”

“We wanted to break that cycle, and get these programs which had proven their value up to scale sustained in all the high schools,” he said.

This is not a new issue to former Gov. Ted Kulongoski, who tried to sequester $300 million for school districts to apply to use for CTE and dropout prevention before his second term ended in 2011.

Due to his longtime support of education reform, the democrat was approached by Stand for Children and Nesbitt, his former chief of staff, to be a co-sponsor of Measure 98.

“It was a tough call for me because I am no fan of the initiative process,” Kulongoski said. “I think it’s not a good way to legislate.”

But Oregon’s “embarrassing” graduation rate is a “sure sign there’s a problem,” he said. He thinks kids are “bored” in school.

“We don’t give them enough choices,” he said. “And I think what it comes down to is, every kid should have the right to go to college, if they want to. But it’s transcended that now, and it’s, every kid is going to college. I just think there are a lot of kids in school who ultimately could go to college, but they would rather do something else. You should make programs available to them, and you should make programs available for the students who do want to go to college.”

Kulongoski said the de-emphasis on job training and CTE could mean that the next wave of immigrants to the U.S. is skilled workers.

“It’s important to have scientists and engineers, but somebody is going to have to pick up the tools to build the infrastructure that this country needs,” he said.

Direct action

As of Monday, opponents of Measure 98 had declared to the Oregon Secretary of State zero dollars raised this election. But a few groups have come out against it. The Rural Organizing Project’s 2016 voter’s guide recommends voting “no” on Measure 98. The Confederation of Oregon School Administrators has also been critical.

Pat Eck and his wife, Janet, have worked on a number of education-related campaigns since retiring as teachers. As leaders of the Oregon chapter of Parents Across America, they generally challenge efforts to “budget by ballot measure.” The group is working to schedule a debate with the “yes” campaign.

“I think it’s scary,” Pat Eck said. “It opens up all kinds of things. Single-issue budget initiatives can crowd out other vital services and force bad policy choices, and I think most politicians in our state in our house and in our senate would agree with that.”

Deb Mayer, a member of Parents Across America, said the measure wouldn’t help direct more kids to the trades, because the ballot language gives priority to funding STEM courses.

“There are so many flaws in that measure it’s almost unconscionable there’s not more opposition to it,” she said “We’re just a small volunteer organization with practically no resources. So, how are we going to take on Stand for Children?”

Pat Eck questioned the provenance of Stand for Children’s funding, and said the measure would create more bureaucracy and one more tier of decision-making.

“Measure 98 is unnecessary and threatens well-designed CTE programs,” he said.

The support campaign for Measure 98 consists of two committees. One, Oregonians for High School Success, has raised $3 million in cash and $1.8 million in in-kind donations. Its biggest donor by far is SurveyMonkey founder Ryan Finley ($250,000).

Direct Action Partners was paid $158,786 to collect the 88,184 signatures needed for the measure to qualify for the ballot, working out to $1.80 per signature.

“It’s a bunch of money,” Eck said. “If you have the money, you can get anything on the ballot. Is this the way we want to run our democracy?”

Crisis level

Nesbitt said it’s a misunderstanding to call the measure an “unfunded mandate.”

“An unfunded mandate would be if the state said to do these things, but didn’t provide any money,” he said. “This is the state saying, ‘Here is the money for these programs; come and apply for it. We hope you all choose to do so,’” he said. “But districts are not obligated to spend any dollars above what the state provides.”

Though some small districts would get much less money than larger ones, under the current distribution formula, small schools would get more per student than larger districts, Nesbitt said.

He said in-migration was a small factor in revenue projections. A larger factor is a resurgence of the state’s economy and its low inflation rate.

“We are seeing a revenue dividend over and above inflation and population growth,” Nesbitt said.

The initiative route is “something that shouldn’t be repeated too often,” Kulongoski admitted.

“But the fact is there is such a crisis with our graduation rate,” he said. “It’s something we need to do something about.”

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A construction industry group has fallen in to support a nascent ballot effort to fund high school career training for the building trades.

Initiative Petition 65 would require funding for dropout prevention, and career and college readiness programs. It calls for the Legislature to dedicate about $800 per high school student to fund career technical education (CTE).

The effort is backed by a group called Oregonians for High School Success. It has so far raised about $132,000. Donors include parking magnate Greg Goodman and Gun Denhart, co-founder of children’s clothing manufacturer Hanna Andersson.

The Associated General Contractors Oregon-Columbia chapter’s board of directors voted at its recent meeting to support the ballot initiative.

Other supporters include former governor Ted Kulongoski, the Latino Network and the Coalition of Communities of Color.

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