Ladies’ Night Out at the Shop

Written by Logan Falletti

Sometimes, women just need a “Ladies’ Night Out.” Krista Mauck, teacher at Hoxie High School in Hoxie, Kan., hosted one in an unusual location: her welding shop.

“It was just a wild idea out of nowhere,” said Mauck. “From a teacher’s standpoint, I know a kid has learned the material if they can teach someone else.”

She was able to make the idea a reality with help from a Beginning Ag Teacher’s Retreat in Salina hosted by Brandie Disberger, instructor in agriculture education at K-State. The workshop focused on financial responsibility in the first years of teaching and planning lessons that brought school and community together.

“The ultimate goal of the program is… to increase the retention rate of agricultural educators across the state,” said Disberger. “By providing financial education and service learning exposure, this conference served to stimulate community involvement and promote financial security for early-career agricultural education teachers.”

Teachers were encouraged to imagine projects that would build bridges between their agriculture-based classes and the outside world. Women are not traditionally exposed to the kind of machinery Mauck used in her classes, so she set out to fix that disparity with a night dedicated to teaching women in the community how to handle the tools. “Ladies’ Night Out at the Shop” was her plan.

Students in Mauck’s welding and mechanics classes prepared their equipment one night after school. Mauck drew flowers, initials, and designs on the metal for the women to cut out. They trained women from the community to safely use plasma cutters and grinders. Around 10 community members attended.

“I fully enjoyed the night. I made a large letter ‘C’ and welded it on a reed rod - my welding skills need to be worked on - other than that I think it turned out great. The kids were fantastic! They were so patient with all of us. I would do this workshop again in a heartbeat,” said Jackie Campbell, participant.

Mauck is considering the workshop again next year.

“As long as I have students who want to help with it. They are the ones that did all the demonstrations,” said Mauck.