COLUMBIA COUNTY, Pa. — Students at the Columbia-Montour Area Vocational-Technical School (CMAVTS) took their lesson outside the classroom on Monday.
"The students are looking at getting into code inspection, knowing what this facility is all about, training local code inspectors," explained Michael Cagigas, the electrical occupations teacher at CMAVTS.
Cagigas brought his junior and senior students on a tour of the Northeastern Training Institute near Bloomsburg. The facility opened in June and trains people in the construction industry.
"Code inspectors, home inspectors, we do specialty training for real estate inspectors, zoning officers," said Larry Frace.
Frace has been a code inspector for more than 40 years and says there is a huge need for these professions. He showed the students this "House of Horrors."
There are more than 1,000 mistakes in the House of Horrors, and these future electricians have been tasked with finding them.
"I wanted to see who could find the most electrical mistakes because they are future electricians and then just go through the house and pick out general mistakes," said Frace.
The three-story building within the training center has miswired electrical outlets, incorrectly installed furnaces, and more.
"It is different coming out here and seeing firsthand what can be done and what shouldn't be done versus what we do in the classroom," said Nevin Keefer, a junior at CMAVTS.
"It's pretty awesome to see all the things that could go wrong in a house, and it helps you point things out," said junior Riley Temple.
The instructors hope the students' hands-on experience helps build on their interest in the construction industry.
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