CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — If you have been to a football game at Buccaneer Stadium, you might be sitting on top of a garage.
It is built into the stands on one side of the stadium for students to learn how to work on cars. There are three classes taught there per school day with about 60 students.
"I taught my own boys a lot and now they're grown up and moved away. So, I kind of feel like I'm going back into that again, and I'm back around my kids so I treat them all the same," Corpus Christi Independent School District auto shop teacher Eric Buchhorn said.
Auto tech classes are open to all CCISD students. Beginning in the classroom, students learn what they will be working on in the garage. Then, it is on to working in the shop to get hands-on experience with cars.
Miller High School senior Francisco Gomez started working on cars with his dad when he was 13 years old. He credited Buchhorn and his dad for his interest in becoming a mechanic.
"They taught me a lot of stuff about cars and when I grow up, I want to work on a lot of cars and help out people," Gomez said.
Students start with the basics like learning about the proper tools and methods, eventually getting to more advanced topics like suspension, brakes and oil changes. Gomez said that he can help his family with their cars thanks to what he learned so far.
"It's very exciting because at home, I also work on my sister's car when it breaks down," Gomez said.
Currently working at Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi Shoreline, Gomez said that he wants to keep doing that job and become a mechanic after graduating high school.
Buchhorn said that students can even gain professional experience before graduation.
"We're trying to get it set up to where some of the local businesses will hire them during school to work, and then they'll get the experience," Buchhorn said. "So, when they get out of high school, they can either go there full time and work for that particular company."
He added that students could choose to go to college or technical school instead, and then start working after that.
Most of the cars they work on belong to students or teachers. Buchhorn said they hope to start a program called Miller High School Customs where people can donate cars or funds for their projects, keeping students busy year-round.
