Mitchell Wilson is combining carpentry education and electricity experience to gain a formidable list of skills that will help him find the career he wants.
The Graves County High School senior is in his third year of study in the carpentry program at the Mayfield-Graves County Area Technology Center. He is also this week’s Associated General Contractors of Western Kentucky Technical Center Student of the Week.
Wilson also has a part-time job at Langston Electric of Paducah, where is learning commercial and residential wiring and other services.
He said he is thinking about going to West Kentucky Community and Technical College after graduating from high school.
“I work for an electrician, so I’m kind of leaning towards that,” he said. “But I want to do a bunch of jobs in the construction field. I want to just learn about it all. Carpentry has never really been ‘kicked out’ yet.
“I like getting all the different aspects of different trades. I’m learning a little bit of everything.”
Wilson said he would like to become a union electrician.
“(Studying carpentry) has helped me a lot for that because I’ve learned a lot through the classes that will help me inside a building,” he said. “I like doing both of them (carpentry and electricity). They’re both very interesting.
“There are a lot of different aspects that tie into each other (in construction). You’ve got to know one to help the other.”
Wilson is competing on the technology center’s SkillsUSA team this year. He placed second in the regional carpentry competition and qualified for the state competition in Louisville next month.
In his spare time, Wilson enjoys riding four-wheelers and working at home.
“We’re currently remodeling our bathroom right now,” he said.
Kevin Hutchens is Wilson’s carpentry instructor and spoke about the class projects that Wilson has worked on.
“We built a wall inside the health science class last year,” he said. “We just completed some work in the electrical department — fixed some stuff for them, built a wall, closed in some stuff.
“Carpentry is a life skill, and it’s going to benefit him if that’s the route he chooses. It’s going to benefit him, anyway.”
Wilson is the son of Robert Wilson and Christina Kemp of Mayfield.
A story featuring the AGC of Western Kentucky Technical Center Student of the Week will run in The Paducah Sun each Friday through March 31 with recipients chosen by instructors and administrators at the seven area technical centers that serve students in the state’s 13 westernmost counties.
In addition to the Mayfield-Graves County Area Technology Center, the 29 AGC of Western Kentucky Technical Center Students of the Week are chosen from the Ballard County Career and Technical Center, Caldwell Regional Career Center, Four Rivers Career Academy in Fulton County, Marshall County Technical Center, Murray-Calloway County Area Technology Center and Paducah Area Technical Center.
The Mayfield-Graves County Area Technology Center serves students from Carlisle County, Graves County and Mayfield high schools and Northside Baptist Church School.
Along with carpentry and electricity, the area technology center offers courses in business, carpentry, computer science, electricity, health sciences, machine tool and welding.
AGC of Western Kentucky will host a banquet April 27 at Marshall County High School for this year’s 29 Technical Center Students of the Week. Students will receive prizes, and Technical Center Students of the Year and an overall Regional Technical Center Student of the Year will be announced.
At the area technical centers, students are learning skills in many career areas that will help them join the workforce upon graduation and help fill the need for skilled workers in western Kentucky.
Follow David B. Snow on Twitter, @SunWithSnow, or on Facebook at facebook.com/sunwithsnow.
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