In line with Indiana’s new focus on high school-to-job training, Merrillville High School unveiled its just-completed $21 million Career, Technology and Education Building on Tuesday.
“It opens so many doors to what’s going on in the real world,” Principal Mike Kurtz said before a ribbon cutting attended by students and school officials.
Guests also toured separate hands-on labs and classrooms for automotive, construction, fire rescue, and welding programs.
The new CTE building connects to the high school on the southeast side.
Construction began about 20 months ago as part of a district-wide $140 million capital project plan funded through a bond issue.
School officials said earlier that the new spending would not be tax-neutral, meaning the plan would be structured around repaying old debt, so taxpayers would not see an increase.
Merrillville School Board President Judy Dunlap, center, and board member James Donahue share a laugh after the ribbon cutting on the CTE Building on Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024. (Carol Carlson/Post Tribune)
Students will not begin classes at the new CTE center until the start of the next high school semester next month, Kurz said, and he expects 300 to 400 students to take the course.
School officials have previously noted growing interest in CTE classes beyond the cramped confines of high schools.
“We’re bursting at the seams, but we needed to grow,” CTE Director Bob Phelps said last year.
In 2015, the Merrillville school left the Gary Area Career Center Consortium and began offering classes at its own high school due to increased student interest. Phelps said there are 24 courses and 29 instructors.
State officials are redesigning Indiana’s high school diploma requirements to put more emphasis on career paths to graduation.
On Wednesday, seniors Kayla Williams and Joshua Burns greeted guests Tuesday wearing welding hoods.
Merrillville High School welding students Kayla Williams and Joshua Burns. Outside the Bay, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024, examines an electric welder in the school’s new Career, Technology and Education building. (Carol Carlson/Post-Tribune)
Williams, 17, said he took his first welding class during his sophomore year and earned his first certification.
“It was difficult, but I was good at it because I’m not the type to give up,” she said.
Williams is considering her future options. She may stay in the welding field and attend Ivy Tech Community College in Crown Point or pursue other academic plans.
Burns, 18, and Williams visited the Navy’s recruiting office on Tuesday to explore career options. Burns said he wants to become a Navy SEAL.
Their instructor, Joe Sokol, who left his job as a math teacher at Munster High School to lead MHS’s welding program, said the lab will include up to 14 bays where students can weld.
The space also includes classrooms, storage, and a large demonstration area.
Sokol said last year, some students went directly to welding jobs after graduation.
Griffith Assistant Fire Chief James Soffer teaches the fire rescue class.
James Soffer, Merrillville High School Fire Rescue Course Instructor and Griffith Assistant Fire Chief, shows how students will be trained on a fire truck donated by the Town of Highland on Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024. Explain. On the right is CTE Director Bob Phelps. (Carol Carlson/Post-Tribune)
He praised the city of Highland for donating a fire truck to the program so students could train inside it. “It’s just like what we do in the fire department,” he said.
The fire rescue area also includes a loft with two windows used for ladder and stair rescues, he said.
“They would push the victim down a ladder or stairs,” Soffer said. Students climbing the ladder will be wearing harnesses to ensure their safety.
There are also clean showers and eye wash stations.
Senior Bianca Martinez, 17, watched Soffer speak while wearing her father’s Gary Fire Department uniform.
Her father worked in the department for 20 years, she said. She said she is considering a career in firefighting or nursing.
She gave a quick assessment of her new classroom environment.
“It’s 100% better. Before, I was just in the classroom and had to use the rope in the hallway,” she said of the hands-on training.
Carol Carlson is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
