Visitors to North Star High School in Lincoln, Nebraska, may be surprised to find a 1967 Cessna 150 aircraft proudly displayed in a hangar-style shop behind a glass-clad bifold door from Schweiss Doors. It’s not every day you find an airplane at a high school—especially one students can learn from and work on.
In Lincoln, it’s part of a partnership with Duncan Aviation designed to create a pathway for students to successful careers in aviation.
And the jobs are there.
A significant shortage of aviation technicians is a growing concern for the industry. Boeing, one of the world’s largest aviation manufacturers, estimates that 716,000 new technicians will be needed worldwide by 2043.
Meeting that demand will require airlines, airports, maintenance providers and others in the aviation industry to attract more people to the profession. One way to do that is to introduce future aviation mechanics to the industry where they are today—their schools.
Working with Duncan Aviation, Lincoln Public Schools established the Aviation and Technical Education Focus Program at North Star High School. Students enrolled in the program can take a variety of aviation-related classes and participate in internships with Duncan Aviation, where they learn directly from aviation technicians.
Headquartered in Lincoln, Duncan Aviation maintains and overhauls corporate aircraft for customers around the world. The partnership provides valuable hands-on experience for students while also helping Duncan Aviation develop a potential pipeline of future employees.
“They need mechanics and employees there,” says Scott Wieskamp, director of operations at Lincoln Public Schools. “And what better place to have a training ground than right here at Lincoln, right where they are at.”
A Schweiss Doors liftstrap bifold door creates a functional and attractive entrance into the aviation shop at North Star High School in Lincoln, Neb.
Lincoln Public Schools, partnering with Duncan Aviation and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Lincoln/Lancaster County, built an addition to North Star High School to house the Aviation and Technical Education Focus Program and space for the Boys and Girls Clubs.
The Schweiss door was engineered to hold a glass curtainwall, creating a visually impressive centerpiece to the aviation shop at North Star High School.
Creating a Real-World Aviation Environment
Once the program was established, attention turned to creating the space needed to support it. With millions of dollars in donations, including contributions from Duncan Aviation and the Boys and Girls Club of Lincoln/Lancaster County, the school district was able to design and construct a new wing at North Star.
The addition includes a hangar-style shop that provides space for hands-on instruction, including work on a small aircraft donated by Duncan Aviation.
“We thought, what better way to help support the classroom, the labs and the curriculum than building a hangar,” Wieskamp says. “Duncan Aviation was offering to provide an airplane and parts and pieces, so we knew we needed the space to make the program successful.”
BVH Architecture of Lincoln was selected to design the aviation wing, which also includes classrooms for technology and aviation courses as well as space for Boys and Girls Club programming, including its Community Learning Center. Scheel-Kayton Construction of Lincoln constructed the addition.
“We wanted to create a setting, an environment for students to think about future careers and aviation,” says Cleveland Reeves, principal with BVH Architecture. “We wanted to think about what it might look like and feel like for them to work in a kind of real-life scenario.”
For the hangar shop, the design team wanted an open, airy environment that would make students, staff and visitors feel as though they were standing in an actual aircraft hangar.
A major part of achieving that vision was the hangar door.
The door needed to provide an opening large enough to move an aircraft in and out while also allowing the school to showcase the educational activities taking place inside.
“We wanted to let the building show off the activities inside,” Reeves says.
The Schweiss bifold door provides a large opening for students to move the school’s plane in and out of the hangar.
The Schweiss bifold door at North Star High School includes a top override switch, photo eye sensors and warning lights and horn. The safety features help make sure the students can operate the door safely.
Putting Education on Display
The school district relied on the project design team, including BVH, to determine the best type of hangar door for the facility. Safety was critical because students would routinely work around and operate the door. It also needed to withstand Nebraska’s sometimes challenging weather conditions.
Transparency was another priority. The concept of a glass hangar door was discussed early in the design process, and Schweiss Doors emerged as the preferred solution.
“Schweiss became the door of choice and selection, and that is what we designed around,” Wieskamp says.
A 35-foot-wide by 14-foot, 9-inch-high Schweiss bifold door was purchased and installed at North Star High School. Safety features include a top override switch, photo-eye sensors, warning lights and a horn to help protect students and staff during operation.
The door was also engineered to support a glass curtainwall system, creating a visually striking façade while providing views into the aviation shop and the activities taking place inside.
“With these types of career and technical education centers, you want to put the education on display, whether it is the equipment, or in this case, a plane, for the students and teachers working inside,” Reeves says.
Wieskamp says installation of the door went smoothly overall. Installers encountered a minor issue while placing the rubber door seal but were able to resolve it. Since then, the door has performed well, and Wieskamp says students, staff and visitors have responded positively to it.
The hangar-style shop at North Star High School is bright and airy, with plenty of natural light, in part thanks to the Schweiss bifold door, covered in glass.
The aviation hangar and classroom expansion at North Star High School was designed by BVH Architecture and constructed by Scheele-Kayton Construction. The goal was to create a space that would provide students a real-world look into the aviation industry including learning how to repair planes.
Designing Schools for Real-World Learning
The aviation wing at North Star High School illustrates how the design and functionality of educational spaces have evolved. Traditional classrooms organized around rows of desks and a teacher at the front of the room are increasingly being supplemented by environments designed for collaboration, hands-on instruction and real-world experiences.
“Now it is much more about trying to replicate real world experiences and settings, to help students think about what the next chapter of their life is, whether it’s a career or college,” Reeves says. “It’s definitely much more about collaboration and getting together.”
That approach appears to be resonating with students. The Aviation and Technical Education Focus Program continues to grow, with more students applying each year.
“It is overwhelming in terms of the number of kids that sign up for those types of classes and that has been a good thing,” Wieskamp says. “We believe our investment was a good one.”
Part of that investment is the Schweiss glass-clad bifold door. While a premium product, it serves both a practical and architectural purpose—providing access to the hangar while putting the school’s aviation program on display.
“The school wanted to put education on display and show off what was going on inside there,” Reeves says. “It is creating a little bit of excitement around that program. It is fun to see.”
Behind that glass door, students aren’t simply learning about aviation. They’re gaining hands-on experience that could help prepare them to become part of the next generation of aviation maintenance professionals.
About Schweiss Doors
Schweiss Doors is the premier manufacturer of hydraulic and bifold liftstrap doors. Doors are custom made to any size for any type of new or existing building for architects and builders determined to do amazing things with their buildings, including the doors. Schweiss also offers a cable to liftstrap conversion package. For more information visit www.bifold.com.
