Industrial Arts

Industrial Arts Department Chair: Keith Welle

The Industrial Arts Department provides students a hands-on approach to learning the principles of design and production. Through the development of teamwork and interpersonal communication skills, and while utilizing traditional practices combined with emerging technologies, students will be able to conceptualize, design and produce quality products.

The Industrial Arts program at Totino-Grace offers valuable pathways for students interested in careers in engineering, architecture, manufacturing, or design. Through partnerships with local businesses and industry professionals, students can gain real-world insights and even internships or apprenticeships that help them transition seamlessly into post-secondary education or the workforce. Additionally, the problem-solving and technical skills students develop in this program are transferable to many fields. 

All Student Elective
1 Semester - 1 Credit

This course provides students with the fundamental principles of architectural design. Students will develop their architectural knowledge and skills through project based activities. Areas of emphasis include spatial reasoning, elements and principles of design, application of the design process, and creating quality original works utilizing sophisticated digital drawing techniques. In addition, students will study the philosophies and design principles of many historically important architects.

All Student Elective
1 Semester - 1 Credit

This one semester elective course will emphasize the design of digitally manufactured high precision objects. Students will utilize CAD software to create drawings that will serve as input geometry to manufacture parts by 3D Printing, Laser Cutting and CNC Milling. The CNC Milling segment of the course will include in-depth study of CNC mill programming, cutting tool RPM’s and feed rates.

Sophomore/Junior/Senior Elective  
1 Semester - 1 Credit  

This is a one semester course that explores topics from Digital Manufacturing 1 at a deeper level. Students will learn more 3D CAD skills including assemblies of multiple components, and joints with motion links. Students will use those skills to create mechanical mechanisms to be 3D printed. Finally, students will learn CAM (Computer Aided Manufacturing) to control the CNC Milling machine to manufacture components.

Prerequisite: Digital Manufacturing

All Student Elective
1 Semester - 1 Credit

In this course, students become familiar with the materials, processes, tools, machines, and practices of the wood and metal industries. During this course, which is both project and objective oriented, students gain hands-on experience in the operation of machines and tools which are common to construction and manufacturing.

Sophomore/Junior/Senior Elective
2 Semester - 2 Credit

Woodworking skills learned in Woods and Metals are further developed by the student during this course. Students are required to pass a safety test before working. All projects made in this course must have a complete set of plans, plan of procedure, and stock bill. Dovetail, dowel, miter, mortise and tenon joints as well as other advanced woodworking techniques are used during the course. Students also work in wood turning and basic cabinet construction. Safety is stressed at all times during this course. Although most students take Advanced Woodworking as a full year course, a student may take each semester of Advanced Woodworking in two different academic years.

Prerequisite: Woods & Metals

Junior/Senior Elective
1 Semester - 1 Credit

Learning objectives and activities in this course are similar to Woods 2 except that students will be expected to create projects with higher levels of complexity, more elaborate joinery, and higher degrees of precision. In addition, students will be expected to show evidence of enhanced levels of efficiency.

Prerequisite: Woods 2

*Although Woods 2 and Woods 3 are two separate courses, students may enroll in both during the same academic year and build one extraordinarily complex or large project that extends through the whole school year and fulfills the project requirement for both courses.