When you step into the classroom and shop space of Gaston High School's Greyhound Design and Manufacturing Program, it feels more like a fully operational print and fabrication business and less like a traditional high school class. 

As 20 students arrive for the day, the skills, leadership and confidence they have developed over the past four months quickly become apparent.

The space reflects both the experience and expertise of the educators who developed it. Instructors Gary Hedin and Wade Sims bring a combined 50 years of teaching experience in subjects such as math, science and career and technical education (CTE).

These educators have long envisioned something beyond a standalone shop or welding class. Over the years, they watched as larger districts like Beaverton, Forest Grove and Hillsboro developed CTE pathways and satellite campuses at their schools, but wondered how to create an experience like that for studnets in their small, rural district. 

Wade Sims teaches his design and manufacturing students. The CTE Academy he launched at Gaston High School in partnership with fellow educator Gary Hedin has been a lifelong goal of his because he believes students learn more by doing. Photos by Jaimie Brady. 

The two attended a work-based learning conference last spring and that's when things started to change.

“We spent hours dreaming and planning how this could become a reality,” Wade says. 

The result is a significant expansion of Gaston’s CTE offerings and a transformative learning experience for students and staff. Through a block schedule, instructors work with students for more than four hours twice a week. They offer an additional class period every other week. Students earn CTE credit while also fulfilling one of their math graduation requirements.

Gary says it's been rewarding to see his students work through real-world, hands-on math problems as they work to complete their projects. 

 Students created a unique product for a local winter bazaar that helped them practice their woodworking and metalworking skills. The proceeds benefited the CTE program. 

They say offering a 4-hour class for high school students hasn't resulted in the challenges you might expect. 

“There’s always work to be done, and students are usually eager to pitch a project,” Gary says. The academy is intentionally structured to expose students to a wide range of skills and equipment, while also allowing them to specialize.

Wade says that they try to align what a student is interested in with their project assignments.

Jaimie Brady, a professional learning coach at Northwest Regional Education Service District, says it was inspiring to see the students in action.

"The ownership and pride they took in their projects was apparent," she says. 

Students participate in every stage of production, including developing their project proposals, designing using Rhino 3D modeling software, printing, fabricating metal, working with wood, painting metal, promoting their products and learning the basic of accounting.

The class launched an online store, and anyone can purchase products there. Fireside Home Solutions in Tualatin recently placed an order of over 500 stickers and various decorations. Revenue from product sales is reinvested directly into materials and equipment, strengthening the program and supporting long-term sustainability.

Alejandra and Steel work together to print and press t-shirt designs for a large customer order. “I wanted to try something new,” said Alejandra, an 11th grader enrolled in her first CTE course.

"Strong partnerships with local industry are vital to a CTE program’s success," says Jaimie.

The teachers and district leaders say they are grateful to work with industry partners who donate time and supplies, including Western Iron Works in Gaston and Renaissance Design, Fabrication & Powder Coating (RDF&P) in Forest Grove.

Instructors Wade Sims (simsw@gaston12.org) and Gary Hedin (heding@gaston12.org) can be reached by email for other opportunities to get involved.