business backgrounder | education & workforce
“ Supporting career and technical education programs is key to rebuilding the American workforce, but too many students are still told that a college degree is the only path to a successful future. Mr. Torppa is opening so many doors for Kalama students to pursue good-paying, high-demand careers in the trades while making sure they’ re having fun along the way.”
— U. S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez
Kevin Lardizabal-Orea, a senior engineering student at Kalama High School, removes a bigfoot product he has designed, cut and painted. He’ ll modify his method after studying what worked and what didn’ t with this prototype.
‘ as real as it gets’
Watching all this and weighing in with questions to help guide his students is Cory Torppa, the CTE director and construction / engineering / manufacturing teacher at Kalama High School. He has supercharged the program with a $ 100,000 grant from Harbor Freight Tools for Schools, which he used to buy new equipment.
Every ninth-grader in their small school goes through his manufacturing lab, which is designed to take them from envisioning a product to creating it, then refining it.
“ The goal is to get them engaged in learning... go from sketch to product,” Torppa said.“ It could be as simple as a sticker, then it’ s a T-shirt, then it’ s a laser ornament. Then we talk about business and marketing— what’ s going to make this ornament better?”
“ It’ s as real as it gets,” he added.
Scan this QR code to watch AWB’ s new video about the Kalama CTE program and Chinook
Shoppe, or visit www. vimeo. com / 1077698032
Go Shopping at the Chinook Shoppe
Next time you’ re passing through Kalama, hop off I-5 for a trip to the Mountain Timber Market, home to the Chinook Shoppe at 254 Hendrickson Dr., Kalama.
Torppa, whose father was a contractor and his mother a teacher, said making mistakes and learning from them is a key part of the program for his students.
“ Half the time our first project doesn’ t work, and we just teach kids that it’ s okay,” Torppa said.“ That’ s where you’ re going to learn the most is when something doesn’ t work.”
going from good to great
On the other hand, he said, having their products for the sale in the Chinook Shoppe has changed their perspective and given the students a focus on quality control.
“ Good isn’ t good enough,” Torppa said.“ To make it down there on the waterfront, it’ s got to be great, and we want to go from good to great. And that has elevated our program.”
Students collaborate. Some of the best art students in the school work with the best engineering students to design products.
Likewise, they end every week with“ Fun Day Friday” when marketing and manufacturing classes join together, including a number of developmentally delayed special needs students.
“ For them to fold even a box is a win,” Torppa said— but in this class their work matters. They are a key part of the team, contributing vital parts of the manufacturing process.
down at the shoppe
Also leading the program is marketing teacher and career-connected learning coordinator Stacy Jones. She supervises students who work at the Chinook Shoppe( they apply, are hired and get paid) when they’ re not in school.
The Port of Kalama, which operates the Mountain Timber Market building, heard about Torppa’ s Harbor Freight Tools for Schools grant and asked if his students would want to sell their products there. What
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