Math, English, History and Science are the basics in high school. They’re the classes that are mandatory, and can even be fun to some. But what if you’re not the best at these classes, or are just uninterested and bored all the time? Electives are a creative outlet but can seem overwhelming due to the quantity offered here at woodland. Maybe you’re too shy to take an acting class, or don’t have interest in techy things like digital media or photo. If none of these classes are your cup of tea, there is a class on the rise that may just be for you-manufacturing.

Manufacturing is a class run by William Carangelo, applied technologies teacher, but it is more than your everyday run of the mill elective. Manufacturing was created to give students, who are interested in the trades, a creative outlet. Manufacturing not only provides job experience for students, but also creates and designs anything a teacher could need.

“Our manufacturing class is actually made up like a company,” said Carangelo.  “We not only design and fabricate products, we can also fabricate per customer order we may receive.”

Students in the class will be able to experience what it feels like to be employed with a company; some of their clientele include Woodland’s very own staff.

“We’ve built things in woodworking like a computer storage cabinet, a corn hole game, a bookshelf, and anything else that needs to be designed and built for the woodland faculty,” said Carangelo.

In addition to getting a taste of what working as a carpenter would be like, students also get to design and construct an electrathon car as well as work with new innovative tools such as a 3D printer.

And though Woodland is not a trade school, Carangelo recognizes college isn’t for everyone.

“The beauty of having this class at Woodland is that you get an amazing education as well as the option to pursue a technical career,” said Carangelo. “Without people like us you wouldn’t have the items that we use every day; our house is even. They were all manufactured by ‘trades kids’.”

So, if you’re a freshmen trying to decide where you want to fit in during your highschool career, or a junior trying to decide what you want to do after high school, this class may be an option to consider. If any of the above topics interest you in the slightest, stop by room 219 to talk to Carangelo. With his help, you may uncover hidden skills and interests you never even knew you had.