At NEC, there’s nothing we love more than community partnerships. So, when Orange Grove High School asked if we had any discarded large electrical spools for a project, we were glad to be of service.
Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) is a Career and Technical Student Organization that functions as an integral part of the Family and Consumer Sciences education curriculum and operates within the school system. Since 1945, FCCLA members have been making a difference in families, careers, and communities by addressing important personal, work, and societal issues. Through participation in STAR events, FCCLA’s competitive event, becoming involved in community service opportunities, student leadership, and attending leadership conferences, members develop real world skills, explore Career Pathways, and become college and career ready.
Repurpose and Redesign is a team event that recognizes participants who apply recycling and redesign skills learned in Family and Consumer Sciences courses and create a display using a sample of their skills. Participants select a used fashion, home, or other postconsumer item to repurpose into a new product. Participants will create a brand-new product, not simply embellish an old one. However, participants may use additional materials if needed to redesign and creatively embellish the new product. At the event site, participants set up their displays and present the results of their projects to evaluators.
For their team event, Orange Grove’s Matthew Castaneda, Lance Lopez, and Ryan Schumann’s goal was to find used and discharged large spools from electrical supplies to keep the spools out of local landfills. We sat down with Matthew, Lance, Ryan, and FCCLA advisor Molly Dobson to see how they created a functional and decorative side table out of the discarded electrical spools. Matthew is a 2021 graduate of Orange Grove High School and will be attending Texas A&M University College Station in the fall. Ryan Schumann is also a 2021 graduate of Orange Grove High School and will be enlisting in the United States Naval Academy. Lance Lopez is an upcoming senior at Orange Grove High School. The electrical spools were donated to the students by Bill Hartman, NEC District 5 Board of Director and Molly’s father.
Q: How did this project get started?
Matt: We got together and started doing research on Pinterest.
Ryan: We knew we wanted to do something with Repurpose and Redesign event. And like Matt said, we went to Pinterest and really went from there. We saw some things that we liked and sparked our interests. We knew we wanted to do a table and then that’s what led us to talk to Mrs. Dobson. We got some spools, and it really took off from there.
Lance: After deciding on our design, we disassembled two large spools. We used tools provided by the Ag department, FCCLA, and Ryan. We reconstructed a table using some of the original bolts along with new hardware pieces. We added decorative cuts to create table legs. We glued the decorate top and allowed it to dry. We then finished off our design with two shades of stain.
Q: With NEC being involved in the community (Youth Programs, Arbor Day, Annual Meeting) how have these tables been beneficial to the students and high school of Orange Grove?
Molly: When we went and did 8th grade orientation, they knew about the girls doing these types of projects. They always associate this group with just girls and not boys. I think it’s really important for everyone to know how to use power tools. You also learn how to use basic tools and basic household duties. Once they’ve seen the table and see what we’ve posted on Facebook, and they are then like “Oh, you can do that in this course?” I think it’s really beneficial for others to see what we can accomplish in this kind of class. Getting Matt, Ryan, and Lance together and realizing that they can do this and go all the way to participate at the National contest and level.
Q: Were there any setbacks that came up when working on this project?
Ryan: Yes, there were definitely some instances where we had a design that we had and thought, in theory, that we were going to do. But we ended up having to adapt. First example would be the nails that were throughout the spools. We thought we can just go ahead and cut right through them with no problem. But we ended up breaking some blades to cut through them, so we had to go get new blades. We could still do our design, but it was definitely more challenging than we anticipated.
Molly: They found something on Pinterest, and we looked at the picture. The boys then drew out a design. They had the two spools and they sat there and looked at them. Their concept on paper ended up being a little different. It was really interesting to watch them think and figure it out. Using the tools and realizing that’s probably not going to really work. They also originally had ideas to put feet on each one of the things but that would have made it a weird height. They really then took it apart. They only get to use 8 pictures, but I was going back and forth and taking lots of pictures of their thought process and how they were taking things apart and putting it back together.
Q: Throughout this whole journey, what is one thing that you can take away and carry with you in the future?
Matt: Coming together as a team and using our skills to put into the table. Being taught how to use power tools was very beneficial as well.
Lance: Definitely teamwork. As well as construction skills and the importance of scheduling and timelines.
Ryan: What I thought was really interesting was if we were not in this event, it was something we would never consider. Now it has opened up new doors for me on how I can be innovative so that we can take material that would otherwise end up in a landfill and repurpose it. Instead of going to a store and buying it, we created something on our own. We are definitely very grateful that we had the material and spools to work with, thanks to NEC.
Molly: They all worked together as a team on this. There are two levels of competitions that Matthew, Lance, and Ryan competed in. The FCCLA STAR (Students Taking Action with Recognition) Region and State competitions. When they went to state, they ended up getting 3rd place. The team scored a 97.5 out of 100. The top 2 in that event advance to Nationals. It must have been very close. Just seeing the growth from where they started from then to now, it has been really amazing. I am very proud of them.
Pictured, from left to right: Molly Dobson, Matthew Castaneda, Lance Lopez, and Ryan Schumann of Orange Grove High School.