The students who are enrolled in machining classes this year at Bedford High School in Temperance, Michigan, will soon have an impressive credential to put on college and job applications. Their department, taught by machining and welding instructor Paul Cook, is one of seven high school industrial arts departments chosen to assist NASA with constructing a metal locker box that will be shipped to the International Space Station.
By the end of the school year, NASA will have 20 such containers fabricated by students across the country. They will use stainless steel and aluminum manufactured to very specific standards and requiring documentation tracking from supplies to completed design.
About 50 students, along with several faculty and staff members including Superintendent Mark Kleinhans, attended the recent kickoff meeting. There were short videos by NASA staff to welcome and thank students who are working on these projects. But most of the session involved three Glenn Research Center representatives giving an explanation of the assignment and hosting a question and answer session.