Proceeds from auction will go toward future student projects
This 14-foot skiff, which was built by Clark welding students in 2017, is being auctioned off to raise funds for the program’s 2018 student project.
For three months this spring, students from Clark College’s welding classes worked tirelessly to create a 14-foot aluminum skiff from scratch. Now the welding program is selling the skiff online to raise funds for future class projects.
As part of the college’s commitment to hands-on learning, welding students complete a completely functional welding project before graduation in the spring. Three years ago, it was a pressure vessel; last year, it was an aluminum skiff. That project proved so popular with students that Professor Caleb White decided to bring it back for 2017, albeit with many improvements over the original design.
This year’s boat is 14 feet long and features storage under each seat, an anchor locker, a drain plug, fore and aft tie-downs, handles for lifting the aft end, and a bow tie-down for anchoring to a trailer. The boat was tested this spring on Lake Lacamas and found to be completely sealed and usable.
“It’s a small boat that is versatile enough to be used on lakes or rivers, and is very stable for a boat of this size,” said White, who worked at Christensen Shipyards for a decade before coming to Clark to teach. “It doesn’t currently have an outboard motor, but it is designed to use up to a 25-horsepower outboard.”
Anyone interested in purchasing the boat may bid for it online at https://www.publicsurplus.com/sms/all,wa/auction/view?auc=1977227. Proceeds from the sale will go toward purchasing raw materials for the welding program’s 2018 spring project. Materials for this year’s boat cost approximately $1,500, and some 20 students contributed more than 1,000 hours of labor to complete it.
Photo: Clark College/Jenny Shadley
