{"id":5331,"date":"2016-05-31T17:37:52","date_gmt":"2016-05-31T21:37:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/?p=5331"},"modified":"2017-04-05T11:49:21","modified_gmt":"2017-04-05T15:49:21","slug":"work-underway-11th-house-students-built","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/work-underway-11th-house-students-built\/","title":{"rendered":"Work underway on the 11th ‘House Students Built’"},"content":{"rendered":"

In March, with days of questionable weather, Technical and Career Education (TCE) Center students in Charlie McDaniel\u2019s masonry class\u00a0began to lay the foundation for a house at 1905 Evar Place in Virginia Beach.<\/p>\n

\"March\"<\/p>\n

Under sunny skies at the end of May, McDaniel and his students looked with pride at their completed work.<\/p>\n

\"May\"<\/p>\n

\u201cThe good thing about a project like this is they actually get to see how the weather affects your working environment and how you have to prepare for it,\u201d said McDaniel.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf it\u2019s raining, you have to cover up your materials so you can work the next day,\u201d he added, \u201cand it gives them some on-the-job actual experience of what it\u2019s like to have to put a house together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Putting houses together with the help of high school students and area professionals is what the Virginia Beach Education Foundation\u2019s (VBEF) \u201cThe House Students Built\u201d (THSB) program has facilitated for two decades.\u00a0The VBEF will celebrate its 25-year anniversary in November, and this is the 11th<\/sup> THSB house.<\/p>\n

When a THSB house is sold, all proceeds benefit the VBEF\u2019s teacher grants program for innovative student projects. Donations of materials and expertise from area businesses defray some construction costs and help increase potential net profits from the sale.<\/p>\n

Located right next door to 11th<\/sup> THSB house under construction is the 10th<\/sup> house. The two-story, four-bedroom home located at 1909 Evar Place was dedicated last fall and put on the market for sale.<\/p>\n

\"10th<\/p>\n

Tallwood High School senior Kenny Wilkins helped put the finishing touches on the mailbox at the 10th<\/sup> house.<\/p>\n

His lessons learned extend beyond just the hands-on skills of the trade.<\/p>\n

\"Wilkins\"<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve learned that working with a team is sometimes the best way to go because we couldn\u2019t really get all this done by ourselves,\u201d Wilkins reflected. \u201cWe learned how to work together and also how to be precise, because at the end of the day someone has to live here. So you learn care along with the brick work. It\u2019s not just masonry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Precise work was noted by Cox High School senior Roberto Mottas as well.<\/p>\n

\"Mottas\"<\/p>\n

\u201cMaking sure everything is straight and level was really frustrating at times, but that comes with any job,\u201d he said. \u201cThe experience was worth it to me. It was definitely enjoyable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Issac Wilson, a senior at Green Run High School, also enjoyed the work, but that didn\u2019t surprise him.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy family does masonry work. It\u2019s in my genes,\u201d he said. \u201cI knew I\u2019d grow up liking it.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, Wilson noted, the work wasn\u2019t without its challenges, citing weather conditions and mixing mortar.<\/p>\n

\"Wilson\"<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the cement is too soft it won\u2019t stick because the block is heavy,\u201d he added. \u201cIt slides right off the bricks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Determination is what the house project experience has taught Wilson.<\/p>\n

\u201cI learned never to give up and keep pushing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The masonry students, all seniors, look forward to graduation ceremonies in June.<\/p>\n

Wilkins recommends underclassmen consider enrolling in a TCE Center program because of the skills and expertise students gain. After serving as a merchant seaman, he may open his own masonry business.<\/p>\n

\u201c<\/strong>It\u2019s a good trade. The best part about it is that it\u2019s your own artwork,\u201d Wilkins said. \u201cIt\u2019s very hands on and you<\/em> lay those bricks. You strike it up. You do everything. It\u2019s not like a machine is doing this, it\u2019s you. And it\u2019s going to be here almost for forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Wilkins<\/p>\n

Much more work on the 11th THSB house has to be done before it stands forever.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to backfill the foundation with fill sand,\u201d said McDaniel. \u201cThen they\u2019ll come in and pour the floor slab [after] the plumbers run their floor pipes and the electrician runs a couple of conduits.\u201d<\/p>\n

Framing the house comes next. McDaniel anticipates that will take place in the fall, when students return to school and are available to assist and learn.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a win-win situation,\u201d said McDaniel. \u201cIt\u2019s good publicity the people who help us, and the kids benefit from the experience they get out here that they normally wouldn\u2019t get from a classroom or lab environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added, \u201cWe\u2019re fortunate that we have the education foundation to back us.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information about The House Students Built program, visit the VBEF website at <\/em>www.vbef.org<\/em><\/a>. To view the real estate listing for the 10th<\/sup> THSB house located at 1909 Evar Place, click <\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In March, with days of questionable weather, Technical and Career Education (TCE) Center students in Charlie McDaniel\u2019s masonry class\u00a0began to lay the foundation for a house at 1905 Evar Place […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":5334,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[142,60],"class_list":["post-5331","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community-connections","tag-tce","tag-vbef"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5331","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5331"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5331\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6432,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5331\/revisions\/6432"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5331"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5331"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5331"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}