Page 14 - Flathead Beacon // 5.18.16

NEWS
Student-Built House Put Up For Sale in Kalispell Flathead High students constructed a two-story family home over the school year
BY JUSTIN FRANZ OF THE BEACON
For the last eight months, more than two-dozen Flathead High School stu- dents have been bused over to a neigh- borhood worksite on Kalispell’s west side. For at least two hours each weekday, the students have traded in their books and notepads for hammers and nails as part of the school’s construction class.
Last week, months of work paid o when the three-bedroom house they built on Corporate Drive was put up for sale.
Flathead School District 5, Western Building Center, Hammerquist Casa- legno LLC, Glacier Bank, the Flathead Building Association, Flathead Elec- tric and the Montana Contractors Asso- ciation helped organized the yearlong class that allows students to get valuable hands-on experience building a house. The class was the brainchild of FHS teacher Brock Anderson.
Anderson said the class gives students valuable skills they’ll be able to apply to future careers. In 2012, 53 percent of all job openings in Montana were for mid- dle-skilled workers and statistics from the state suggest that in the next decade 50 percent of all jobs will be aimed at those
COLUMBIA FALLS
Schnebel Named Chamber Executive Director
Local business owner Stacey Schnebel has been named the Columbia Falls Area Chamber of Commerce’s new executive director.
Schnebel, who co-owns the Stone- y Lounge and UnderCurrent Web, has been a board member of the chamber for three years and has served as president for the last year-and-a-half. Since last fall she has served as interim director following the departure of Anna Stene, who replaced longtime director Carol Pike last year. With Schnebel assuming the role of executive director full-time, current board vice president Mark John- son has become president.
Schnebel is also on the Flathead Elec- tric Co-op board of trustees.
The new executive director said she is looking forward to guiding the chamber toward the future. She said that Columbia Falls’ business community faces a variety of challenges; particularly from the rapid growth the area has been experiencing. The chamber includes businesses both in Columbia Falls and around Glacier Park, including those in Polebridge, Hungry Horse, Coram, Martin City, West Glacier and Essex. The chamber was established in 1987 and has more than 250 members.
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Flathead High School students built a two-story home on the west side of Kalispell this year. The home has been put up for sale and the money made from it will go back into the construction program. JUSTIN FRANZ | FLATHEAD BEACON
of the project.
Anderson said that the students put
in more than 9,700 hours of work on the house since last September.
“The kids learned everything from pouring concrete to plumbing and from electrical work to insulation instillation,” Anderson said. “The kids touched every facet of this project.”
Conagher McKinney, 17, a junior at Flathead High said he has taken shop classes since he was in seventh grade. While those experiences gave him some of the basic skills he needed, he said that he learned so much more getting his hands dirty while building the house. The house includes three-bedrooms, three-bathrooms, a full kitchen, living room, family room, and two-car garage.
“It’s been really cool to see this go from a patch of dirt to a standing build- ing,” McKinney said.
The house has now been put up for sale and Anderson hopes to sell it for $309,000. All of the money made from the sale will be put back into the con- struction class program and Anderson hopes that it will be self-su cient within a few years.
jfranz@ atheadbeacon.com
KALISPELL
FVCC To Graduate 374 Students This Week
Flathead Valley Community College will graduate its 48th class this Friday during the college’s spring commence- ment ceremony. The ceremony will begin at 7 p.m. in the Trade Center at the Flat- head County Fairgrounds on 265 North Meridian Road in Kalispell.
FVCC will recognize 374 students for completing graduation requirements during the 2015 – 2016 academic year. Of those, 306 students earned asso- ciate degrees and 68 students earned certi cates.
Mick Blodnick, the outgoing president and CEO of Glacier Bancorp, Inc, will serve as commencement speaker.
news@ atheadbeacon.com
same workers in various trade professions. “There is a huge need for students with these skills because the skilled labor force is getting older every year,” he said. Anderson said students worked closely with subcontractors to learn
EUREKA
Middle School Earns National Award
Eureka Middle School is one of three Montana schools to receive the National Blue Ribbon Award, which honors aca- demic achievement and recognizes schools that are working hard to close the achievement gap among students. Gov. Steve Bullock and State Superintendent Denise Juneau visited the school on May 16 to celebrate the award.
“It is an honor to be able to celebrate Eureka Middle School’s designation as a Blue Ribbon School. It is a testament to the dedication and commitment of the sta , administration and community to provide a world-class education for the students in Eureka,” Governor Bullock said. “By insisting that each and every student has the opportunity to succeed and following through with that mission, Eureka Middle School has demonstrated that it is a shining star worthy of being named among the best in the country.”
The school was nominated for the award because of the extensive work it has done to help students in math and reading. Academic testing has showed the school was in the top 40 percent of Montana’s students in recent years.
di erent crafts during the project and at the end received an apprenticeship pro- gram certi cate from the Department of Labor and Industry. He noted that the local communities, especially those in construction, were incredibly supportive
BROWNING
56 People Running in Tribal Council Primary
More than four-dozen people are run- ning in the June 7 primary to ll four open spots on the Blackfeet Tribal Busi- ness Council. After the primary election whittles down the eld, candidates will face-o in a general election on June 28. The new council members will be seated during North American Indian Days and a new chairman could also be selected then.
The open positions represent Brown- ing, Heart Butte, Seville and Old Agency. Incumbents Bill Old Chief, Forres- tina Calf Boss Ribs and Earl Old Person are among the people running to keep their spots on council. The list of can- didates recently published in the Gla- cier Reporter includes familiar names, including former chairman Willie Sharp Jr. and other former members. Coun- cil elections occur every two years and members are seated for four-year terms.
While the tribe’s government was pushed into turmoil in 2012 and 2013, the last few years have been more stable under the leadership of Chairman Harry Barnes.
NEWS
CITY BEAT
MAY 18, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM