BEMIDJI β Since the start of the 2023-2024 school year, students in Tony Hommesβ construction classes have owned a project about five miles west of Bemidji High ΝαΝαΒώ».
Measuring in at 1,830 square feet, a four-bedroom two-bathroom house currently sits unoccupied as it awaits a future owner.
ADVERTISEMENT
This residence is the result of a 30-year partnership with the Headwaters Regional Development Commission, which was commemorated with an open house last week where BHS students could showcase the fruits of their labor.
With families and district staff milling about, Hommes noted the framing, windows, shingling and siding work that over 200 students completed throughout the year.
βWe try to give them an experience that is like the world of work,β Hommes said. βIf they want to do this, this is what theyβd be doing.β
An opportunity to bring in outside expertise, Hommesβ classes partnered up with Northwest Technical College and contractors to complete electrical work, plumbing, heating, cabinetry and concrete work.
With all moving parts coming together in a final product, junior Alexi Smith expressed appreciation for the effort her fellow classmates exhibited.
βItβs cool how everyone came together as a team from the beginning,β Smith said. βWith everything that we did together, itβs pretty cool to see the end result.β
Smithβs involvement in her construction class reaffirmed her interest in a future career in construction, though her options remain open.
ADVERTISEMENT
βEverything that I learned here is going to help me start anywhere,β she added. βThis class has taught me a lot of skills and the skills you learn can help you with so many different things in life.β
With tentative plans to pursue law enforcement after graduation, sophomore Sadie Borg opted to take a class that transcended the walls of BHS and accrue skills that would prepare her for life on her own.
βI thought it was a good opportunity to learn things here that I could use at my own home,β Borg said. βItβs really nice being able to leave school and do your own little projects because Iβm not a fan of sitting in a classroom. I love to be out, doing stuff. And itβs really great that we get to come out here.β
Building bigger
Since 1994, BHS has built over 50 homes in partnership with HRDC. The Headwaters Housing Development Corporation, a subsidiary of HRDC, was created specifically to address an inadequate supply of affordable housing throughout the region,
HHDC has provided financial backing for each housing project and also manages the sale of each house once completed.
βEvery year, itβs somebody different who buys it,β Hommes mentioned. βIt could be a young couple looking for their first home or a retired couple who decides that they love it.β
Former BHS teacher Ron LeClaire explained the original partnership also included construction for Habitat for Humanity.
ADVERTISEMENT
With the help of former HRDC Executive Director Tim Flathers, the three entities secured grant funding to effectively launch the partnership.
βWe had four classes who were building two houses a year. Sometimes it was for Habitat, but usually it was for HRDC,β LeClaire said.
Comparing the builds from the 1990s to those of today, LeClaire noted a sizable increase in square footage.
βWe didnβt build garages in those days,β he reminisced. βWe built about 1,000-square-foot houses, and now weβre building bigger.β
Having the chance to check out the work under his contemporaryβs supervision, LeClaire commended Hommes β who just so happened to be a student-teacher under LeClaire and was initially hired by the district when LeClaire retired.
β(Hommes) does a great job. Heβs a great person and the kids like him a lot,β LeClaire said. βIβm thrilled to see this program continue.β
Continued collaboration
HRDC Executive Director Naomi Carlson noted the partnershipβs role in nurturing a healthy workforce in the Northwoods.
ADVERTISEMENT
βTraining students to be able to stay in this region to do different trades, thatβs a thing thatβs lacking,β Carlson said. βThis partnership aims to provide trade development and keep talent in the community.β
Moving into the future, HRDC Operations Manager Levi Haar would like to address home affordability and hopes to diversify the trades that are involved in each construction project β namely the implementation of solar energy.
βWeβre looking at energy efficiency in homes, something that is a priority for our organization,β Haar said. βAre there other options besides the traditional single-family home model? Weβre hoping to explore some of those in the future.β
Carlson hopes that Hommesβ leadership will spawn similar partnerships in other districts across Beltrami, Clearwater, Hubbard, Mahnomen and Lake of the Woods Counties.
βThe collaboration and the work that he does in conjunction with HHDC is a need,β Carlson said. βThis doesnβt happen with just one entity.β
Coinciding with a Hommes looks forward to continued collaboration to expand the BHS construction program in perpetuity.
βAs long as Iβm here, Iβm going to keep on trying to make this thing grow,β Hommes left off. βThis is our next generation of builders.β
ADVERTISEMENT
The Trust Project
