Kenny Orce frames a wall with a classmate while building a shed in a new carpentry class on Tuesday, March 5, 2024. Orce and eight other students are taking part in a program that allows students in Steamboat Springs to learn a trade while earning college and high school credit. Photo by John F. Russell

New carpentry program gives students in Steamboat Springs the opportunity to learn a valuable trade

This story appeared in the March 15, 2024 edition of the Steamboat Pilot, written and photographed by reporter John F. Russell. 

By John F. Russell, Steamboat Pilot

The sound of power tools fills the air inside Perry-Mansfield’s Conrad Hall as Steamboat Springs High School sophomore Kenny Orce works to frame a wall as part of a pilot carpentry class.

The class being offered to local students comes from a partnership between Colorado Mountain College, Steamboat Springs High School and the Perry-Mansfield Performing Arts School and Camp. It gives high school students who are concurrently enrolled at the college a chance to earn certification from the National Center for Construction Education and Research while building up college credits as part of the Career and Technical Education carpentry core class.

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