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It’s no secret that the education system in the Keweenaw is known for being tech savvy.
Students learn at an early age how to combat problems with ecology, utilizing the cyber world and acquiring practical knowledge that they will carry into adulthood.
One such program that assists young aspiring pupils is an after school open shop that’s offered by Hancock High School’s Industrial Arts Department.
‘These kids have this great opportunity but they just don’t get enough hours in the day to utilize the facility that we have now,” said Hancock High School Industrial Arts Teacher Gary Mishica.
That facility has been in the making for many years, and once a week, it’s accessible for students who are welcome to drop in and work on their projects, whether it be a broken chair leg, a motorcycle part, or anything else that requires tools.
Mishica said, “We’ve got guys that are woodworking. We have guys that are working on engines. It’s just a night for them to do what they want to do and they didn’t have a chance to do during the day.”
The Open Shop program takes place from 7 to 9 pm every Wednesday and is open to all students who have completed basic shop class.
Mishica said, “I teach them how to use 90 percent of the equipment in the shop. They know the procedure. They know how to work safely.”
The shop itself is a state of the art facility with basic bending tools, complex lathes, metal and woodworking equipment that Mishica keeps up to date by selling metal art as a fundraiser that supplies the shop in addition to his annual budget.
“They stop in just for metal sometimes and other times they just need a hole drilled, or they need a quick weld, and that’s what it’s all about,” said Mishica.
The most commonly produced item on that list is a decorative piece of copper that students cut and form into the shape of the Upper Peninsula.
That UP wall art makes its way into several area gift shops and then on the walls of homes and businesses across the UP and beyond.
