The students in Evanston Township High School’s Geometry in Construction class completed their course work in time: building a two-story house.
On Aug. 11 the finished three-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath house made its way in two sections up Dodge Avenue.
The City halted traffic on Dodge Avenue between Emerson and Lake streets as the house, hoisted onto a flatbed, rode from the school’s south parking lot to its permanent location at 1820 Dodge Ave.
At its new location, the first-story section was lifted firmly but gently, and the crane operator deftly set the first floor section onto the foundation.
With a crowd of neighbors, ETHS staff and other onlookers, the crane operator eased the second-story section onto the first. The home will soon be ready and will be sold as affordable to an Evanston family.
Under the auspices of ETHS’s Career and Technical Education department, Matthew Kaiser, industrial technology teacher, and Maryjoy Heineman, mathematics teacher, created the curriculum and guided students through the course.
This past year was the second year for Geometry in Construction, ETHS’s practical and technical math course, in which students learn real-life construction skills, hands-on problem-solving and immediate math applications.
Last year’s course drew 50 students, who constructed a single-story house, which was sold at an affordable price.
One popular feature of the course is the Community Build days, during which members of the community pitch in with their skills and enthusiasm.
Architect DonnaLee Floeter designed both this year’s and last year’s homes. Local builder Todd Kihm handled the subcontracting.
Even though the house is gone, construction has not wholly abandoned the high school’s south parking lot: A shed to house tools for other similar projects, constructed over the year, will remain.
Story by Mary Gavin; photos by Mary Mumbrue