Bolingbrook Students Look to the Future

Submitted by Valley View School District 365U

Nearly 100 fifth graders from Tibbott Elementary School spent several hours Tuesday at Wight & Company headquarters in Darien learning about future career possibilities.

“Wight has been sending volunteers to our school for several years,” said 5th grade teacher and field trip organizer David Mertes. “So last year we started conversations about coming to their place to show our 5th graders all the different types of careers available, other than just an architect.”

Students rotated among four small group activities, meeting with Wight employees who talked about careers in engineering, land development, marketing, transportation, construction and architecture. They also received guided tours of the exterior of the two buildings on Wight property, learning about prairie restoration, landscape architecture and landscape maintenance.

“Wight and Company is a good fit for something like this because we have so many different careers in one building,” said Emily Catacchio, Sustainable Solutions Manager for Wight. “We think that architecture is really important to the learning environment and we try to stay on the cutting edge of what is happening in classrooms. So we make an effort to maintain good relationships like this one with our schools and their communities.”

Wight staff members played a key role in the construction of Tibbott’s edible garden and they continue to partner with Tibbott through the Green Apple Days of Service and by helping to maintain the garden.

Wight & Company has provided integrated architecture, engineering and construction services for more than 75 years.