East Aurora Advertiser

Ormsby Construction Class Looking to Community for Project Ideas



In his first year as principal at the Wallace D. Ormsby Center School, David Bogner is hoping to expand learning opportunities for students as well as showcasing their talents within the community. 

One measure he is already pushing with the Construction Technology class is to seek out possible projects that people could have completed by students at the school. Maybe it’s a picnic table. Or some Adirondack chairs. A small shed is a possibility. Flower boxes are another option. It could even be a simple cutting board or a whole host of other ideas as long as it can provide a lesson for students.

Students listen as teacher Paul Hoch goes over lesson construction plans. Photo by Adam Zaremski

“I would like to keep it community based, something to support the community here. The kids here do good work,” he said.

The thought he and teacher Paul Hoch have is to ask if anyone has something they want built and then see if the students could handle the project. If it looks like it would be a good fit, the person would provide all the supplies to the school and the students would take on the work. 

Bogner said he thought of the idea from what he has witnessed at other career and technology schools in the region over the last 11 years. Right now, this Ormsby class already teaches the students by constructing a 15 by 15-foot structure, framing it, adding drywall and a roof to get a proper sense of how to do that work. But after it is done, it is taken apart and the materials are normally scrapped. 

“It’s a good learning experience for the kids, but that’s it,” he said. 

Looking at other schools, he noted one in Chautauqua where students will build five to 10 sheds a year for project based learning. In this case, a person will supply the specifications for a desired shed and the class will then get an estimate of supplies needed. The customer purchases the materials, drops them off at the school and gets a finished product they can take away afterwards. 

These are some of the structures that students work on at the Wallace D. Ormsby Educational Center’s construction technology class. Photo by Adam Zaremski

“Let’s make projects that are project based learning, and goes out to the community, something the kids can be proud of what they did. Paul has some creative ideas and I want to support him in that,” Bogner said. 

Anyone interested in this or a similar project can reach out to Bogner at the main office to present the plan. He said he would review the projects first before passing them along to Hoch. He is open to many other ideas that he has not considered, anything that would be good for the students. 

Hoch said he would be watching over and assisting throughout the projects to make sure they are appropriately completed. He said he has a good group of students ready to tackle a variety of tasks.

The class has already been utilized in past years for community projects. There are the Adirondack chairs around the fire pit at the East Aurora ice rink. Some of the newer garbage bins along Main Street have either been repaired or built by the class through a partnership with the East Aurora Rotary Club – the original receptacles were built by Tom Bojanowski. And Bogner said other community based initiatives will be unveiled in the near future.  

For Hoch, also in his first year leading the class but has been instructing at the school for years, his construction and technology class is about safety and proper usage of tools. But it’s also about giving students a better chance when seeking employment, to have a set of skills they can utilize over others looking for a job. The high school students can leave his class with an OSHA safety certification and even some college credits. 

“My goal is I would love them to go into the construction industry with enough knowledge to walk into a company and impress the owner of the business with what they know. My goal isn’t just to have them go out and know about lumber and nails. My goal is to [get them to have] the fundamentals of construction and know how to do it from concrete and up,” he said

Bogner said the Ormsby school continues to see more students from the region – it serves East Aurora, Orchard Park, Holland, Iroquois, Springville, North Collins and Eden districts – who are showing an interest in what it can offer. Past perceptions about career and technology schools have been changing – though more work is needed – and this is a good time for people to consider learning a skill or trade.

“Career and technology schools have really evolved over time,” he said “We have to take advantage now. The pendulum has really swung back in our favor. College is crazy expensive. There is a workforce shortage. These kids leave here with career skills in the field. They can get hired right away. They can go into the career field, or go to college and be ahead of the game with college credits.” 

Students at the Wallace D. Ormsby Educational Center gain experience in the automotive technology class. Photo by Adam Zaremski

People interested in sharing project ideas can reach out to Principal David Bogner at 716-652-8250.

One response to “Ormsby Construction Class Looking to Community for Project Ideas”

  1. Larry Best says:

    The Ormsby School might want to undertake rebuilding the Welcome to East Aurora sign on Seneca at Willardshire Road. It’s in terrible condition.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.