The Department of Labor funds special projects for Job Corps every year. These projects fall under the Career Technical Student Training (CTST) heading. This year’s CTST task was not just your run of the mill endeavor, as this project would showcase the amazing skills of both Muhlenberg Hard Trades instructors and Muhlenberg Job Corps students. This year’s project would take place between the administrative and the recreational buildings. Between the two buildings a grassy area with major low spots and drainage issues clearly needed attention. After a year of planning for a project this size, Nick Toomey, Heavy Equipment Cluster Manager, along with Heavy Equipment Trade, and CDL broke ground on March 19th of this year. The major undertaking would start with the HEO (Heavy Equipment Operator) trade removing areas of the old concrete sidewalks. This would allow the ground to be elevated, which in turn would alleviate drain and cosmetic issues. To help extract water away from an area that was holding water on a consistent basis HEO installed 200 feet of drain tile into the ground. Once the drain tile was buried, CDL trade brought approximately 30 dump truck loads of quality dirt onto Center, this was to elevate the lower riding areas. In between dumping loads of dirt, the HEO trade used trade equipment to level piles of dirt and in some cases move the dirt to other designated locations. The HEO trade teamed up with Henry Jarvis and Russell Moore from the maintenance crew for concrete work needed to complete the project. Three different sidewalks, equaling up to 40 yards of concrete, was poured to provide students’ traveling paths between the two buildings. The Hard Trade Foundation instructor, Charles Wiseman, had student volunteers for the latter stages of the project. Chaney and John Austin, from HEO, took lead on this project.  John Austin stated that well over a hundred job corps students were able to earn Work Base Learning hours necessary to complete their trade requirements. John stated that these hands on projects are the projects where students learn the most.  Instructor Chaney said these types of projects are the projects where students learn if they are cut out for this type of work. Muhlenberg Job Corps student, Devon Jones said, “Working on this project made me realize this is what I want to do in life. “  MJCC wants to thank its hard trades for doing an absolutely amazing job on a huge undertaking that will withstand the test of time.