BARTLETT — The Labette County High School Building and Trades program had its talent on full display last Friday during a recent visit with members of the Kansas Department of Commerce.
Lieutenant Governor David Toland visited several sites in Southeast Kansas last weekend, including the house LCHS students are currently finishing in Bartlett. This is the second home students have built in the community. This hands-on training program provides students opportunities to explore construction, plumbing, electrical wiring, and HVAC installation.
Currently, the program is taught by Tyler Cares, a 2014 LCHS graduate. He is employed through Coffeyville Community College. Students in the Building and Trades program can receive college credit through concurrent enrollment. Cares noted that in recent years, several students have received both their high school diplomas and an Associate’s Degree in Construction Technology, come graduation season, with many being recruited to work for Crossland Construction.
Since the Parsons Sun’s last visit to the site in November, the windows and doors have all been fully installed, and the walls have been fully completed, save for the attached garage. Students were working on installing flooring the day of the visit.
Kyleigh Moore wrote the Youth Job Training Community Block Development Grants, which helped bring both of the homes in Bartlett to life.
“I think it is a great program. To see these students succeed after this program is what is really rewarding,” Moore said.
The goal of the program is to be self-sustaining, according to Superintendent Dr. John Wyrick, with the sales of one home going toward the costs of building the next home. A Youth Job Training Community Block Development Grant also supports the program by offering students the opportunity to be part of a paid summer internship.
The Building and Trades program charges customers $1.50 per square foot for labor and the cost of materials on smaller projects, which goes toward expenses such as replacing tools.
Patty Ann Sanborn of Southeast Kansas Inc. said the program’s results are amazing. “I think this is what we need in Chanute, Independence, Neodesha, and Iola, and Columbus. We need this size of house for workers.” While not seen as often today, many schools in the past had similar programs. Toland himself recalled Iola High School having a similar program when he graduated in 1995, which has since gone away.
“When I became aware of what you were doing here, and saw that you’re bringing back that type of model — and you’re doing it in a town, the side of Bartlett — It’s extraordinary,” Toland said to Wyrick. “The way to fix our communities is house by house. It’s building by building on Main Street; it’s by taking that Township Hall Building up the street — let’s take the biggest eyesore in the community and go after it and try to fix it.”
Wyrick said since the first home was built, there has been momentum in the community to repair and improve buildings and infrastructure.
During his visit, Toland spoke with several of the students working on the home, including Gaige Moore, Ethan Cuddy, Aaron Simpson, and Brantley Allen.
Gaige said he loved building the house, and that before participating in the program, he had never really worked with tools.
Toland asked Cuddy if he had a sense of pride in these homes. Cuddy said yes and noted that it gave him a nice feeling when the first house was bought.
“This is such a nice-looking house. The fact that you, as young people, could be trained at this age and never having really swung a hammer before, or know how to use tools, and the next thing you know, here we are.”
Simpson, a sophomore, grew up around construction and told Toland that he plans to take over the family construction business.
“Succession planning is such an important part of how we are going to keep our communities alive. There are a lot of businesses that close — not because they don’t have customers — but because they don’t have anyone to sell it to when they are ready to retire,” Toland said. “I’m glad you are able to keep the business in the family and keep it going.”
Allen said his favorite part about being in the program was learning another trade that uses his hands. Allen, a junior, is a welder and works for a mechanic after school.
Toland asked Cares how other communities could entice individuals knowledgeable in construction to come back and teach, as he had.
“It’s very difficult, I’d say, to be able to find somebody that is in the construction field that is already running a business and making the big bucks to try to step back to teach,” Cares said. “I couldn’t honestly tell you what I was thinking when I did it, but I’ve really enjoyed it. I’m glad I did it, and I love watching these kids learn, and we have a good time.”
Smith highlighted that these students graduate and are workready.
Wyrick said the current plan is to build at least two more homes in Bartlett.
“The boys have done a great job. They show up eager and ready to work every day because they are definitely to the point now where they are seeing the finished parts of it, and they’re getting pretty excited that it is getting close to turn-key,” Cares said of the students.
