Two Garrett High School Career Development seniors and Ivy Tech Community College Fort Wayne dual enrollment students, Taylor DeLong and Brayden Fisher, competed in the National Association of Home Builders Student Competition and won First Place in the Secondary Schools Architecture category and the Rookie of the Year award.
During the competition, Fisher and DeLong applied skills learned in the classroom to a complex problem and completed an Architectural project/proposal. They created a working set of drawings on a house that will be built by a custom home builder in North Carolina. The students were also expected to develop a construction schedule, a budget, retail price and research local subcontractor rates and material costs.
“Winning this competition meant a lot,” said Brayden Fisher. “It was a real-world project where we could apply everything we have learned. Having experience in the design software from our residential and auto CAD classes, and experience in building an actual house in building trades allowed us to take everything we have learned in our Ivy Tech classes and pour it into that project.”
“The NAHB competition was the golden opportunity for Brayden and I to present the skills that we’ve been blessed enough to have gained at such an early age,” said Taylor DeLong. “We really couldn’t have done it without the courses Ivy Tech has offered. I’m thrilled to be named the winner of the competition.”
Fisher and DeLong have been taking dual enrollment classes with Ivy Tech and working toward a college credential while still in high school. Both students will graduate high school with Ivy Tech certificates in Carpentry and Computer-Aided Design (CAD). As part of the Career Development Program, DeLong and Fisher are also getting real-world experience through internships.
“The partnership between Garrett High School and Ivy Tech Fort Wayne is an excellent example of a meaningful partnership that makes an impact on our students’ lives,” said Chad Sutton, Director of Career Development at Garrett High School. “These students benefitted from our program and it helped them win a national competition! It’s a great example of what education can be.”
“The Garrett Ivy Tech Fort Wayne partnership is a great pathway for a high school student to start their path to a lifelong career,” said Dr. Nick Goodnight, Ivy Tech Fort Wayne Construction and Diesel Technology Program Chair. “Brayden and Taylor’s accomplishments prove that high school students have the ability to excel in a college level program, which is the purpose of the Next Level Programs of Study.”
Interested in learning more about dual enrollment experiences at Ivy Tech Fort Wayne? Contact Kyle Bischoff at kbischoff2@ivytech.edu.
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