What's Happening at Ranken Technical College

Ranken's Latest Video

Check out the College's latest video on YouTube. This video features information about the College, our five technical divisions, and our campus life.

Ranken Helping Local High School's Engineering Program

Ranken's architectural division is helping a local high school build their new engineering program which is being offered for the first time this fall. 

Highland High School in Highland, Ill. is implementing a new program called "Project Lead the Way" (PLTW).  This is a nationally recognized program with the goal of increasing the amount of young people who pursue engineering and engineering technology programs at  two- and four-year post-secondary colleges and universities.  The PLTW curriculum makes math and science relevant for students by working on hands-on, real-world projects.  This allows the students to understand how the skills they are learning in the classroom can be applied to everyday life. 

Chris Durbin, the Highland High PLTW lead teacher, recently visited Ranken to speak with the head of the Architectural Technology department, John Kreishman.  Durbin mentioned that their school is building an entirely new engineering lab for the PLTW classes and that they would like to install drafting tables like Ranken's.  Since plans were moving forward to upgrade all of the furnishings in Ranken's drafting labs, Kreishman responded, "How would you like to have these?"  The architectural department will donate the drafting tables along with 24 stools.  Highland estimates that Ranken's donation will save their district over $10,000.  John Kreishman and Steve Kashycke, the admissions representative for Highland, were instrumental in coordinating the donation.

"We can't thank Ranken, John Kreishman and Steve Kashycke enough for making this happen," comments Durbin. "Ranken has led the way in project based, real-world application of knowledge for over 100 years. 

"I think its great that Ranken supports a program like Project Lead the Way which stresses hands-on, project based learning. 

"Ranken's approach to teaching with hands-on technical experience is an excellent example of the learning style we want out students to embrace at Highland High School."

ART Participates in MAGIC summer camp

Missy Borchardt, a faculty member in architectural technology, and Annsih Serud, a current architecture student, participated in the Mentoring A Girl In Construction (MAGIC) camp this summer. MAGIC summer camp is designed to offer high school girls the opportunity to learn about the various avenues of employment for women in the construction industry.

The girls also receive hands-on training in the basic skills of carpentry, electrical, and welding. During this one-week day camp the girls make new friends, learn new talents, and explore career options that they have might not have ever considered. They are also introduced to successful women working in all phases of construction.

The girls, clad in their pink hard hats, participated in various projects throughout the week to give them a hands-on look at what its like to work in the construction industry. The week included an overview of safety on the job site, participation in a hand and power tool demonstration, creating a lamp to take home and a field trip to a job site.

Missy and Serud were among the five guests who were invited to speak to the girls about what its like to be a woman in the construction industry. “It was rewarding to see these young girls have an interest in our trade and pursue a great opportunity into the trade”, says Missy, “It was also a great opportunity for us to network with other female professionals”.

To learn more about MAGIC summer camp and to see a video of the girls completing their projects, visit their website at http://www.mowit.org/mentoringagirlinconstructionsummercamp 

Introduction

I’d like to start by introducing myself. My name is Billy and I am a junior here in the architecture department.  I am native to central Illinois and I am currently enrolled in 3d studio, design studio III, and a few general courses.

The architecture department has been pretty busy lately with a lot of the classes having some big projects due.  Last week was a tight one for me —  in our 3d class we have been working on modeling a home of our choice and we had reached our first major due date.  Nevertheless, there were a few of us hanging out here after class to finish printing.  We all seem to be working on the whole time management thing.  For most of us in our class this is the first time we have had instructor Dave Graf who is in his second semester teaching here at Ranken.  We all feel that he is pretty easy on us when we make mistakes but I think we would also all say that besides what he teaches us in class we have also learned a lot more about what it really takes to succeed in our future profession.