As saws whirred and voices echoed in the wood shop, Jose Luna, 17, focused on the project at hand. He carefully lined up his ruler to make a perfect 90-degree angle, marking the wood with a pencil.

“Ever since I was little, I always wondered how stuff works,” he said. “I always liked trying to make something.”

Luna is one of 26 students enrolled in Woodworking Tech I, part of career and technical education at Austin High School. Four instructors teach classes in welding, furniture, cabinetry, small engine repair, graphics and construction for grades 9-12 in the Annex.

Terry Carlson, career and technical education instructor, was teaching his students how to make a face frame for a nightstand cabinet Tuesday.

“Basically, we’re trying to teach lifelong skills,” Carlson said. “We’re just trying to develop interest.

The classes cultivate interest in many students, who develop that into a career with a two- or four-year college education.

“Most of our classes we have over here … we have articulation certification through Riverland,” Carlson said. Students who meet the standards can qualify for up to $750 in tuition at the college, which is good for up to two years. The opportunity is comparable to post-secondary enrollment options, he said.

Students in advanced classes can choose larger projects; one is even making a canoe.

“You’re not going to be in school forever,” Carlson said, so making furniture will be practical when moving out of the house.

Carlson said the project his Woodworking Tech I class is working on requires measuring, problem solving, cooperation and using equipment like hand tools and stationary tools.

“They learn how to fix their problems — it’s part of life,” Carlson said.

Enrollment in career and technical education is overwhelmingly male, Carlson said, but he will occasionally have girls take a class.

“We’re definitely trying to even out the gender gap here,” he said. Two girls are enrolled in his Woodworking Tech I class.

Kacee Arens, 16, said she took the class because she “thought it would be fun to work with wood.”

“I think it’s really fun, and the boys help me out,” the sophomore said.

Interest in the classes often begins in middle school, Carlson said. Ellis Middle School offers classes in manufacturing and machining, plastics, graphics, woodworking and multimedia.

“That helps out a lot, gets kids pointed in the right direction,” Carlson said.

Anthony Condit, 15, said he made bowls last year in a woodworking class.

“I heard we got to make a cabinet,” he said of the class he is in now. “I though it would be cool for my room. I like working in my garage.”