Instruction from a Bassick alum
It was just possible, I thought, that Bassick High School alum John Ratzenberger — actor, author, Pixar voice veteran, “Cheers” know- it- all Cliff Clavin, carpenter, apprenticeship advocate, Trump appointee and loyalist, and unblushing authority on most, if not all, subjects — might have an opinion on the plan to build a new Bassick on the campus of the University of Bridgeport.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Right? So, I took a shot, gave him a call and started to explain what was …
“Have the architect call me,” he said.
“Here’s what they should do. In the basement of that school they should have separate areas for all the standard trades — electricians, carpenters, metal workers, plumbers. Keep the auto shop so the teachers can get their cars fixed for free. And you teach the English and science and whatever they teach in high school these days, upstairs.
“Then, the city, the state, some entrepreneur, whoever, they buy some dilapidated buildings, like some of those beautiful old homes down there in the South End, and have the students from those trade classes redo them. Then the homes could be sold and the profit goes back into the school, or a scholarship fund.
He took a breath and continued.
“It would be like having an apprenticeship for four years. By the time those kids get done, they’ve got a skill and a career. You’ve changed their life. They have pride. You know I’m a carpenter. I can still go anywhere in the world and get a job the next day,” he said.
“When they canceled high school shop classes, the dropout rate went up 30 percent. That’s where the gangs come from. Kids have no options,” he said.
Ratzenberger, 73, lives in Rancho Mirage, a city of some 17,000 residents, in sunny Southern California.
Yes, of course, Ratzenberger is an actor. But his real mission in life remains unwavering: “I’m just trying to save Western civilization,” he says. He is the author, with coauthor Joel Engel, of “We’ve Got it Made in America, a Common Man’s Salute to an Uncommon Country,” ( Center Street, 2006).
“You know, if every actor disappeared, well, our families would be sad. The rest of the country wouldn’t skip a beat. We’d sit around the campfire, tell stories, play a banjo, entertain ourselves with sock puppets, whatever.
“But if there are no electricians, plumbers, truck drivers, civilization grinds to a halt. Civilization is the convenience of driving on a road that’s smooth, being able to hire a professional to fix your water heater. Listen, no robot is going to fix your water heater,” he said.
Details regarding the new Bassick’s ultimate shape are still up for discussion. There’s been talk, for instance, of also having arts and culinary tracks.
The project has been rightly praised for the impact it will have on youngsters who might never have dreamed of or considered going to college. Spending four high school years on a college campus, with college students walking around, is definitely going to change some aspirations.
Ratzenberger’s idea sits fine with Michael Testani, superintendent of the Bridgeport school system.
“The mentality across the country continues to be ‘ college or bust.’ It’s not necessarily for everyone,” the superintendent said last week.
“My father was a union carpenter and I have friends who are electricians. Incorporating the traditional trades is something I’ve thought about,” Testani said.
Whatever the final shape of the new Bassick, there is an even more important function in Ratzenberger’s view.
“For so many years — decades now — schools don’t teach how great America is anymore.
“What they teach is how bad America is. You see those cemeteries in Normandy and Arlington, they bring a tear to my eye.”
But as noted, skills are forever. “I remember watching my grandfather make a rocking chair,” he said.
He chuckled. “I just finished making one for my granddaughter.”