Dakota Bockenhauer is an asset to our school and our community because he has made leaps and bounds for the district, the students, as well as our small community. I think it is safe to say that we all hope Mr. Bockenhauer is here for a long time and keeps making improvements to our education and shop.
My favorite class throughout high school is shop class. My first class was Structures. I took that class the first semester of my sophomore year. That year was Mr. Bockenhauer’s first year teaching at Potosi High School. When I was in middle school, we had exploratory classes with Mr. Bull. I didn’t plan on taking another shop class because it wasn’t interesting to me, so I decided not to take a shop class at all freshman year. Then when it was time to pick classes for my sophomore year, I decided to try out one of the shop classes again to see if I liked it with a new teacher. Mr. Bockenhauer was different than Mr. Bull, because Mr. Bockehauer likes to do more hands-on activities and not so much on-paper materials. This helps me because I learn better when it is hands-on.
I liked Mr. Bockenhauer, because when he first started at Potosi, his goal was to clean the shop up and make it look nice again. Mr. Bockenhauer started by getting rid of all the equipment that he knew he wouldn’t use. He also cleaned up the floors by getting a referendum for a new floor. He got new wood tools and now is working to try to get new mechanic’s tools. He also updated tools for students so they knew how to use them if they would ever get a job that involved mechanics, engineering, or woods.
Mr. Bockenhaur finds different ways to push his students so they can learn, but also be successful in how to do something. Mr. Bockenhaur taught me new skills like how to use a jointer, which is a tool to make the edges of a piece of wood smooth. He also taught me how to use a bandsaw to cut the wood. I was able to make a dresser and a toy box from the knowledge I learned in Mr. Bockenhaur’s class.
I was able to interview another student, Andy Robinson, who stated he “liked Mr. Bockenhauer because he has respect for everyone in his way”. Andy likes what Mr Bockenhauer did to the shop because he thinks the Potosi shop is a better place for every student that walks into the shop. Tyson Buss, another student, also stated that “Bockenhauer made a change in the shop for the best and he is a great teacher.”