TAUNTON — Superintendent-Director Dr. Alexandre Magalhaes, Jacqueline Machamer, the school district’s Vocational Technical Coordinator, and Middleborough Town Manager James McGrail are pleased to announce that the school’s senior Electrical class successfully completed an in-community project that supported a population in need in Middleborough.
The students collaborated with the Town of Middleborough to bring electric service to a 40-foot storage container that is being used to store food, perishables and infant products for migrants living in an emergency shelter in the town.
“We are proud to once again partner with the Town of Middleborough on a project that provides our students with real-world experience as well as benefits the community,” Superintendent-Director Magalhaes said. “Projects like this help ensure our graduates are leaving with the skills needed to start successful and fulfilling vocational careers.”
Working under the supervision of Electrical Instructor Keith Powers and Town of Middleborough Facilities Manager Matthew Foye, the Bristol-Plymouth students dug a trench from a service pole to the container, and installed and wired up lights, a new breaker panel and a ceiling-mounted thermostatically controlled space heater. The lighting and space heater helped prevent the food and perishables from freezing during the winter and provided a comfortable working environment for the emergency response team working with the families.
"The students from Bristol-Plymouth worked hard in less-than-ideal conditions to complete this project in a timely and professional manner," said Town Manager McGrail. "The Town of Middleborough continues to benefit from the quality education and vocational training Bristol-Plymouth is providing its students."
Machamer said this was the second year the senior electrical class worked with the Town of Middleborough. The school works with communities to evaluate project requests to ensure they involve practical skill development for students and align with the Massachusetts Vocational Curriculum Frameworks for the associated program.
“These are authentic learning opportunities for our students that test their skills,” Machamer said. “We appreciate the willingness of our member communities to provide these in-community live-work projects.”
Students involved with the Middleborough project said it was a great experience.
“This year, working at the Middleboro Town Hall was a one-of-a-kind experience, especially when we were able to install a service, space heater, and lights into a shipping container,” said senior Thomas Thayer. “Not many people are able to say they’ve had the chance to do this.”
In addition to the Middleborough program, the school’s Electrical juniors, as well as Carpentry juniors and seniors, are currently involved in a project in the Town of Dighton, and the Metal Fabrication class has been working with the City of Taunton. |