Construction and manufacturing students at Chickasaw High School have spent two and a half years on a project that will carry their education far beyond Alabama — all the way to a village in Honduras with no electricity.
The students have been converting a shipping container donated by the Mobile Port Authority into a fully solar-powered computer classroom for Los Tabolones, a small Honduran community whose one-room school serves first through sixth graders with no air conditioning and no power. The project doubles as coursework toward the students’ National Center for Construction Education and Research core credential.
Off-Grid Learning, Built by Teenagers
The students installed insulation, air conditioning, lights, and solar panels, then finished the unit with a fresh coat of paint. The solar setup will power laptops — recycled from Chickasaw classrooms — and provide internet access, letting students in Los Tabolones join Zoom classes instead of hiking to the nearest electrified high school.
“These kids are actually not only taking charge of their education, but now they are helping with the education of the kids in Los Tabolones,” said construction and manufacturing teacher Brian Copes. Building materials were funded through sponsors including Harbor Freight Tools for Schools.
A Trip to Deliver It — and More to Come
In March 2024, the Chickasaw students who built the classroom planned to travel to Honduras to set it up themselves. Copes said watching students experience the community firsthand is the true lesson of the course.
And the work isn’t stopping at one container: two more shipping containers have been donated to Chickasaw, with plans to partner with Atmore High School in Alabama and Gulfport High School in Mississippi to build more classrooms for other communities abroad.