Building Trade and Construction Design Academy Established at NHS

June 18, 2008

The Northview High School Academy of Building Trades and Construction Design was officially established Tuesday night by the Escambia County School Board.

The program, essentially a small school within a school, has been in the works for some time.

Students at Northview will have the option of taking construction related classes as they have in the past, or they can enroll in the academy at Northview. In the academy, their other classes such as algebra, science and writing will revolve around the construction trade. For instance, if they take a construction academy algebra class, their work will center on learning to do algebra as it might be useful in the construction industry.

“Lots of students already take construction at Northview,” Principal Gayle Weaver said. “They like to work with their hands and do things in wood, plastic, glass and metal.”

“The construction academy will give the opportunity to take that a step further and learn the construction trades,” she said.

The school recently sent letters to the parents of all of the incoming ninth graders that signed up for a construction class trying to build interest in the program. Weaver said that very few students have enrolled in the program, but she expects enrollment to increase over time as students and parents learn more about what the  Northview High School Academy of Building Trades and Construction Design has to offer.

meehan.jpgNorthview teacher Tom Meehan will oversee the academy. Meehan teaches drafting and construction technology. He received a Bachelor’s degree in Management from Armstrong Atlantic University and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of West Florida. Meehan has been teaching about nine years.

Specialized academies were also established by the school board at other county high schools. They include:

  • J.M. Tate High School Early Childhood Education Academy
  • Pine Forest High School Early Childhood Education Academy
  • Pine Forest High School Culinary Arts Academy
  • West Florida High School of Advanced Technology Multimedia Academy
  • Washington High School Early Childhood Education Academy
  • Washington High School Health Science Academy

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under Education, News