Harbor Freight Award honors North Scott building, trades teacher

ELDRIDGE – James Simmons is excited about getting young people ready for the jobs of the future. But he’s not excited about having the spotlight shined on him. That was evident Tuesday morning, Oct. 3, when the North Scott High School teacher was  honored for being one of 25 teachers in the nation to win […]

ELDRIDGE – James Simmons is excited about getting young people ready for the jobs of the future. But he’s not excited about having the spotlight shined on him. That was evident Tuesday morning, Oct. 3, when the North Scott High School teacher was  honored for being one of 25 teachers in the nation to win the 2023 Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence award. That award includes $50,000 that will be used to help the North School High School skilled trades program. Harbor Freight Tools launched the awards program in 2017 to recognize outstanding instruction in the skilled trades in U.S. public high schools and the teachers who inspire students to learn skills to prepare them for life after graduation. 

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Mr. Simmons emerged as a winner in what is a very competitive awards program. More than 1,000 teachers across the nation applied for this year’s teaching excellence award, Ashley Bennett, senior district manager for Harbor Freight, said during the ceremony. In total, Harbor Freight is awarding $1.5 million in prizes to 25 skilled trades teachers across the U.S. (A list of all those teachers awarded the Harbor Freight prizes can be found here.) The winners teach a variety of skilled trades, including construction, carpentry, plumbing, welding, automotive repair, agricultural mechanics, advanced manufacturing and industrial technology. “I am excited about getting kids jobs. … This is extremely encouraging,” Mr. Simmons said during the surprise ceremony for him held outside a home being built by his students in the school’s trades program. That under-construction home is at 419 Linden Lane, Eldridge. During Tuesday’s brief ceremony, Mr. Simmons added that he is proud the skilled trades program is helping teach students skills, and helping the economy by providing needed workers. It was apparent on Tuesday that he is much more comfortable talking about his students and program than he is about his own accomplishments. In fact, North Scott Principal Shane Knoche said Mr. Simmons almost didn’t apply for the Harbor Freight award because he didn’t want to shine the spotlight on himself. “He struggled to write (for) this grant … because you have to talk yourself up a bit when applying,” Mr. Knoche added. The school principal praised Mr. Simmons for helping prepare students for future jobs, and for getting the area business community involved in the process. Before Tuesday’s ceremony, he pointed to a sign next to the student-built home that lists more than 30 area businesses that have contributed $63,196 in donations and discounts to the trades program.  The principal said that Mr. Simmons was largely responsible for making those business partnerships a reality. In addition to being a teacher, Mr. Simmons also oversees the construction and work-based learning programs at North Scott. Even though he doesn't like to praise himself, Mr. Simmons did have words of thanks for the students in the program, and the North Scott School District. He said the district took a chance on him a decade ago to teach skilled trades, even though he doesn’t have a teaching degree. “It shows there is value in teaching kids something that you have expertise in,” he added. That expertise in the trades was on display on Tuesday. In addition to presenting the award, a crowd of about 30 people got to see about 15 North Scott students continue the work of building the house on the south edge of Eldridge. That 1,800-square-foot home will have three bedrooms on the main floor and the two rooms that can be used as additional bedrooms in the basement. The home is scheduled to be done next spring. “We won’t have any problems selling this. Everybody wants to live in Eldridge, and there’s not enough housing here right now,” said Jason Cousino, the school instructor overseeing the students on Tuesday. One of those students, Parker Freymann, 17, a senior at North Scott, was being kept busy with roofing work and other jobs. He said he loves the work and might make it his occupation after school. “I like that we’re not doing the same thing every day. It’s always something different,” he added. The North Scott trades program has about 24 students. This year, all those students are from North Scott. In past years, the program has also had students from Pleasant Valley and Calamus-Wheatland school districts, said Mr. Knoche. “I have built my program around educating parents and students about the fact that skilled trades careers are not ‘alternative’ careers. I have helped them see that the skilled trades might be exactly what they are built to do, making it their best possible choice,”  Mr. Simmons said in a news release from the school district. After obtaining a bachelor’s degree in business, he spent most of his 20-year career in the construction industry as a business owner. Mr. Simmons was recruited to teaching in 2013, when he started transforming North School High School’s construction program to include the full range of the building trades, including carpentry, electrical, plumbing, welding and manufacturing.  Since then, he has served as a teacher leader in his department, and a building trades leader in the local Regional Planning Partnership, where industrial tech teachers work to make high-quality trades courses available to every student in the region. He also chairs the North Scott Building Trades Advisory Board, which includes owners and operators from the region’s largest construction companies. The board meets monthly to collaborate on aligning public education curriculum, facilities, pathways, internships and apprenticeships to industry standards.  Mr. Simmons said he is passionate about helping students see skilled trades opportunities clearly and changing stigmatized perceptions. He often brings in professionals from local industry to speak to the class about their experience and work alongside students in specialized projects. His projects cover a variety of techniques, such as materials processing, mass production of Adirondack benches, concrete pouring and finishing, shed construction, and electrical and plumbing modules.  The Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence was created in 2017 by Eric Smidt, the founder of national tool retailer Harbor Freight Tools, to recognize outstanding instruction in the skilled trades and the teachers who inspire students to learn skills for future careers. With this year’s prize, Harbor Freight Tools for Schools will have awarded more than $7 million to more than 130 U.S. public high school teachers and their schools’ programs – supporting tens of thousands of students along the way.