Cedar Springs — When senior Logan Galinis turned the crank on the side of the drill press and lowered the bit down onto the metal plate below, he did it under the watchful eye of not one, not two, but five shop teachers, all taking note of his technique.
If Logan felt any added pressure, he didn’t show it. Not even when retired Cedar Springs industrial arts teachers Dan Davis and Steve Ringler offered him some pointers.
“They’re just telling me what to do and what not to do,” Logan said, unfazed, as he worked the drill.
The reason for the audience was Forever Red Hawks, a district initiative that invites alumni and former staff members back to Cedar Springs to see what’s new and what’s changed since their last visit.
This time around, industrial arts was the focus. Ringler and Davis — along with three other former shop instructors — were touring the high school’s wood shop and metal shop areas, which are now overseen by teacher Cooper Heinzman.
‘It’s a fun break from the academic environment. You’re up, you’re moving around, you’re conversing, you’re getting your hands dirty.’
— retired CSHS shop teacher Tom Kloote
The plan was for the shop teachers to work alongside students in pairs of two or three, making bottle openers. But high school shop rooms are chaotic, noisy places, and all structure was abandoned pretty quickly as the retirees ventured off on their own, stopping here and there to chat with Heinzman and his students.
Building Skills With Many Applications
In another corner of the metal-shop space, senior Alex Harroun chatted with the retired teachers and showed off a Halloween-themed project he’s been working on — a weld of a skeleton hand. Alex picked up the project while waiting for the parts to come in for a boat motor he’s repairing.
Impressed by the design, Ringler suggested that Alex try using a hinge and welding a whole metal skeleton forearm.
Like Logan, Alex had nothing but positive things to tell the former teachers about the industrial arts program.
“I’ve gotten the knowledge on how to weld, how to properly use all the equipment and make sure we’re all safe, and overall, just working as a team and figuring out challenges yourself,” he said. “I’ve done this all four years, and it’s probably my favorite class.”
This was music to the ears of Dan Davis, who taught shop at CSHS for 33 years. Davis said he’s always loved hearing about students’ great experiences working with wood and metal.
When Davis was teaching, he noticed that shop lessons helped students contextualize and wrap their heads around other subjects.
“We were making a birdhouse, and they learned about fractions,” Davis said. “I had students who came and said, ‘Now I understand what they were trying to tell me in math class!’ because they could see it, if they had to draw it, measure it, cut it. Then it was applicable to other aspects of life. It’s nice when you get the feedback that it helped them in another class.”
Davis said the industrial arts area was looking good, but he’d love to see it continue to grow.
“A little more space, I think, would be a good thing,” he said.
Students ‘all doing the right thing’
Tom Kloote, another former CSHS shop teacher, also tagged along on the tour. Kloote helped design the space teacher Cooper Heinzman is now using, back when the high school was in development in the ‘90s.
He said Heinzman is doing a great job with the space.
“He’s got a good variety of things going on — metal working and woodworking,” Kloote said. “The kids, they’re enthusiastic and they’re all doing the right thing. With the safety glasses and the way they’re drilling and grinding, it’s spot on. So I couldn’t be more pleased.”
Kloote said one of the underappreciated strengths of industrial arts is how it builds and fosters work ethic, and teaches basic skills that students will be glad to have when they become homeowners and learn how costly contractors can be.
“And it exposes them to different kinds of businesses and careers that they wouldn’t normally have been exposed to,” Kloote said. “It’s a way to pique their interest and give them a little bit of a background.
“And besides that, it’s a fun break from the academic environment. You’re up, you’re moving around, you’re conversing, you’re getting your hands dirty.”
Heinzman, for his part, would have loved for the group to stick with the bottle-opener activity, but said at least the former shop teachers got to take a look at the space and see the students at work.
“They’re doing drilling, they’re doing cutting, they’re doing grinding — all the main metal-shop stuff,” he said. “We might not have gotten (the bottle openers) done, but it was still fun.”
As he was heading out, Kloote extended a hand, clapped it on Heinzman’s shoulder, and said, “Hey Coop, keep up the good work. I’m proud of you.”
Read more from Cedar Springs:
• New principal pair excited to continue partnership
• Closing out summer with a camp adventure
