Jeff Umphrey Nails his Way Through Life.
by Amber Olbrot
Construction Technology II instructor, Jeff Umphrey has been working with and teaching young people construction technology for 14 years here at the Kankakee Area Career Center.
Mr. Umphrey jokes stating he's "happy to survive each day" since working and teaching construction, a main goal should be to come through the day injury-free. Making sure boards are secure, nail guns go off only into wood, and saws cut away wood, not fingers is much appreciated!
The Umphrey family has a long history of construction technology. Mr. Umphrey says he is happy to continue to follow in his family's footsteps spanning over sixty years of Umphrey's in the construction trades.
The one person who motivates Mr. Umphrey to do what he does best is none other than his father. Through most of Jeff's life, his father taught him life values, life skills, and a considerable amount of construction skills which Mr. Umphrey continues to share with his construction students.
Mr. Umphrey was very prepared to share his knowledge and talent as he not only had the support and
Along with the help of Mr. Doug Enz, Construction Technology I instructor, the students build, from the ground up, a home, which is eventually sold to some lucky family in Bourbonnais. Other than a few specialty areas, construction technology students are taught specific skills and work together as a team. They even pour their own concrete and complete the landscaping prior to putting the house on the market.
Seeing his students in action, whether nailing away or cutting through wood like butter, sends Mr. Umphrey home with pride. Like the US Post Office, Mr. Umphrey and his students work in almost all weather conditions. According to Mr. Umphrey, the only time he gets disappointed is when a student doesn't seem to have any goals and acts childish. "A construction site is no place for fooling around - it's just way too dangerous."
Evidence of the positive impact Mr. Umphrey has on his students is that many of his students have become extremely successful in the construction trades. One of his students who went on to college for their construction technology degree is a superintendent for a construction business. He is now working on a 50-story high rise building worth $110 million dollars. Amazing!
Jeff Umphrey, for all his years of being here, is still nailing away and teaching what he knows and loves best of all construction technology.
