Mr. Christian, you have had such a positive impact on me—as a person and as a student—and I look forward to your class everyday. I was nervous Metals and Fabrication would be hard but an appreciation for welding developed in me. I can’t stop judging or being in awe of welds I see in public. You are helpful, friendly, and caring. You take time to look over my work and give me tips and advice, and for that I am thankful.

With gentle advice, a smile, and a pat on the back, you nudge me onto success. Whether it's giving me the settings or telling me to correct my angle or speed, you know what to say. You are blunt and honest and I respect that, it is helpful to hear exactly what I did wrong and how to fix it.  And you never cease to give me the right advice, no matter how many bad welds I show you. You are an expert and I trust everything you say.

During the lamp project, I had a 16 inch space and you advised that I cut my numbers (my lamp had a ‘34’ on it) at eight inches in length. I thought, “he clearly doesn't know what he's talking about, that's half the length of my lamp, it will turn out all wrong.” Even though I assumed it would mess up my project, I went with it. My “stacked” orientation made my lamp turn out excellent and the eight inch peices were perfect. This and the hundreds of other times you've helped me are the reasons I respect you.

I look forward to your class because you are more like a friend than a teacher. I love the environment you've created; you make everyone feel welcome. There's a perfect harmony between being funny with the class and getting work done. Stress is alleviated when I can go into a test with a smile after we play pictionary for the access code. And I will never get bored listening to your stories; you are wise and experienced.

I like how organized you are; you make everything run smoothly. Your clipboard helps you mark grades and the chart on the locker room door makes it simple for everyone to keep track of what they need to do. You make sure everyone is caught up and on track. You care about us and our futures. You let us know of job opportunities and have listings for them on the shop door which is helpful for everyone going into the trades.

You taught me how important it is to have stewardship. I take care of the shop better than I take care of my own room. You showed me how important clean-up is and I developed a love for a clean work space. I learned dignity and humility by cleaning up a space that doesn't belong to me. It isn't pleasant to come into a dirty booth, so I make sure to leave it better than I found it. 

I started out scared of everything, thinking, ‘is this class gonna be hard?” Even though I thought welding was dangerous, I learned to be comfortable with it. You helped me grow as a student and a person, I appreciate it, thank you Mr. Christian.