Northwest Indiana high school quartet to show off construction skills

Chicago Tribune

04-05-2025

Before his senior year of high school, Dylan Sjoquist didn't know Bryce Graham, Alex Waszak and Kristofer Garner well.
But now, the four seniors aren't just teammates, but good friends.
'The other guys are also pretty passionate about what they're doing for the project, and it's really good working with them,' said Sjoquist, a Highland High School senior. 'We're able to have trust in the other person to get their part of the job done, and we're able to work on our own thing at the same time.'
The four Northwest Indiana high schoolers make up a construction team that has seen regional and national success. In June, the teens will compete in the Skills USA Championships, which celebrates skilled trades and accomplishments of those interested in trades, according to the SkillsUSA website.
The week-long conference, which is held in Atlanta, brings together 6,500 state champions who compete for national gold, silver and bronze medals in 114 different competitions. The Highland group will compete in SkillsUSA's TeamWorks category, which focuses on carpentry, roofing, masonry, plumbing, electrical and teamwork skills.
Garner said last year the classmates competed individually, but they learned this year that they do better as a team.
The group won SkillsUSA's state competition in April, and Garner said they placed second at a regional competition.
'I'm pretty excited (for nationals),' Garner said. 'For state, we weren't really — or at least I — wasn't expecting too much of a good outcome, but we got first. I'm just going to try not to be too worried about it, but be prepared and go into it and have fun.'
Graham, Sjoquist and Waszak all said they're excited for the SkillsUSA national competition as well. Waszak said they can all focus on different areas they're most passionate about, and he thinks that creates a better final product.
Scott Ciupak, the group's construction technology instructor at the Hammond Area Career Center, said watching their success has set a good example for current and future career center students.
'It's very fulfilling,' Ciupak said. 'They're just very ambitious, eager individuals, and it's motivating for me because it encourages me to have more and more for them. … It really increases the quality of our program by having better examples and peer mentors for the group that comes up behind them.'
The Hammond Area Career Center offers 13 career pathways for students at 10 Northwest Indiana high schools, according to the center's website.
The career center has a two-year program, where juniors typically make up the first-year class and seniors make up the second-year class. During junior year, students focus on structural components of building a house, including walls, floors and roofs framed out of wood.
Second-year, or capstone, students are taken to local job sites for nonprofits, Ciupak said, and they help with light remodels, flooring, painting, trim work and more.
'I've been using most of my skills on my house, which is in a big remodel mode,' Waszak said. 'I redid the basement, I redid the bathroom, I did a lot of drywall, and my garage is half-insulated.'
Waszak wanted to join the program because he wanted to learn what options he had outside of traditional school.
Like Waszak, Graham joined the program because he was interested in the construction field, and he wanted something outside the traditional classroom setting.
'I really enjoy it,' Graham said. 'It's something I'm passionate about, and it's fun, and it's a way to give back to the community, while actually learning things that benefit us and our future.'
Although he's still in high school, Graham owns his own business, Graham Property Services, which focuses on landscaping, lawn care and snow removal. The program has taught him how to effectively and smoothly run the business, Graham said.
Sjoquist also owns a business, Patriot Property Solutions, which helps with interior and exterior renovations, including work on patios, landscaping, deck building and staining.
After high school, Sjoquist plans to focus solely on his business.
The career center program has taught Sjoquist what his path might look like, and he's learned what qualities he's looking for in future employees.
'Going through this class, seeing what's important to these people who are taking the course and seeing what qualities I should look for in employees, is definitely a big thing,' Sjoquist said.
After high school, Garner said he plans to attend Purdue University Northwest, and although he doesn't know what he wants to study yet, the career center program has helped him learn more about his options.
'It was really nice to learn how the construction trades work,' Garner said. 'In my opinion, college is better for me if it's affordable, but I still really think the trades are important, and I feel like a lot of people should take the time to at least learn a little about them.'