Kurt Wischmeyer had one request of the Lisbon School board – do not refer to his program as shop class.
“The term woodshop is demeaning when the skills this program touches on include construction, architecture and engineering,” Wischmeyer said. “I don’t look at this program as teaching students how to use tools; I look at these as courses that will just help students prepare them for life.”
Wischmeyer said just like math and language arts teach students skills like math and reading, industrial technology will give them practical skills they can use the rest of their life.
Wischmeyer said he is beginning his third year of teaching, after several years in a construction career previously. Wischmeyer graduated from Iowa State University and then he and his wife moved to Kansas City for their jobs. After a few years, the couple returned to southeast Iowa. His wife is originally from the Mount Vernon area, and Kurt was from the Cedar Rapids area.
When the couple’s third daughter was born, Wischmeyer returned to be a stay at home dad. In doing so, he began volunteering at Washington Elementary School.
“I was encouraged to get my substitute teaching credentials, and over the span of two years, I got my teacher’s certificate,” Wischmeyer said.
Wischmeyer has been an industrial technology teacher at Springville the past few years before taking the position at Lisbon.
Industrial technology classes are part of the career and technical education offerings for the Lisbon school district. The first year of this program will open doors for students to explore the industrial technology fields, Wischmeyer said.
“I love this program,” he said. “It can hit on every opportunity for post-secondary students to explore. It can give people a chance to see if joining the workforce or a technical school are the right choice for them, or if four-year colleges in degrees pertaining to engineering or construction is what they want to explore.”
Wischmeyer is also a firm believer in students learning in a culture of errors.
“I want students to learn from their mistakes and apply the skills we’ve learned,” Wischmeyer said. “I want them to use the engineering process and problem-solving skills they’ve learned to help them get from point a to point b. If a student makes a mistake, like cutting a piece of lumber wrong, that’s an error they can learn from – by learning to measure properly as well as another chance to use a saw to cut their materials properly.”
One area that Wischmeyer thinks could expand in the Lisbon area is to offer welding, but those classes might take a few years to develop.
Currently, Wischmeyer is working on developing the curriculum for the industrial technology program and completing his Project Lead the Way certification. He is also building contacts with businesses and people in the community to be places students could visit or could speak to the class as part of that curriculum.
In the one-year goal, Wischmeyer is hoping to offer a career technical skill offering club at the school, which could be tied to SkillsUSA, which offers competitions.
Wischmeyer said the five-year goal for the program is to look at expanding more course offerings. He says he looks to do that by offering some courses every other fall, which would give students in the program more opportunities to learn different skills.
He’s also hoping to offer more classes that cater to only female students, who may be deterred by being the only girl in an industrial technology class.
New teacher discusses industrial tech program at Lisbon
July 22, 2021
Kurt Wischmeyer (right) presents at the Lisbon School Board meeting Wednesday, July 14. Lisbon School Board member Allan Mallie and Lisbon Schools business manager Laurie Maher are also pictured.
About the Contributor
Nathan Countryman, Editor
Nathan Countryman is the Editor of the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Sun.