Graduates of Holland College’s Heritage Retrofit Carpentry program will now be able to continue learning conservation arts through a new agreement with the American College of the Building Arts (ACBA).
Located in Charleston, South Carolina, the American College of the Building Arts is the only four-year accredited college in North America that offers a bachelor’s degree in the traditional building arts. Under the terms of the agreement, graduates of the one-year Heritage Retrofit program at Holland College who have maintained an overall average of 70 percent will be eligible to enter the second year of the ACBA’s Bachelor of Applied Science degree.
Degree pathways provide students with a seamless transition from Holland College to another post-secondary institution by preapproving the credits they will receive for their college courses.
Josh Silver, instructor for the Heritage Retrofit Carpentry program, said the agreement is the culmination of years of work.
“All of our program content was vetted by the ACBA to ensure that it met their rigorous standards. This agreement provides an exceptional opportunity for our graduates to further studies in the conservation arts,” he said.
Holland College’s Heritage Retrofit Carpentry program is the only program in the world to have been approved by ACBA for a degree pathway agreement.
“ACBA provides the educational foundation for students to become exceptionally skilled building artisans while receiving an outstanding liberal arts education,” said ACBA President Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Colby M. Broadwater III. “This unique combination of education and training positions graduates to become tomorrow’s leaders in preserving and restoring our heritage, as well as building new structures worthy of future preservation.”
Located in the Centre for Applied Science and Technology on the Prince of Wales Campus, the Heritage Retrofit Carpentry program teaches students the construction techniques that were used centuries ago and how to replicate them by combining traditional skills with the latest technology.
Students work on historic properties across Prince Edward Island, preserving and restoring them to structural standards and energy efficiency without compromising their character, aesthetic, or charm. Heritage Retrofit Carpentry students restored the doors of St. Dunstan's Basilica, windows in Charlottetown’s City Hall, and are working with Parks Canada on several projects, including the restoration of Province House.
The American College of the Building Arts educates and trains artisans in the traditional building arts to foster exceptional craftsmanship and encourage the preservation, enrichment, and understanding of the world’s architectural heritage through a liberal arts education.
In this picture: Heritage Retrofit Carpentry students (L-R) Adran Shojaei, Charlotte Morrison, and Megan Stewart work on one of the windows from Province House. (Photo by Alex MacIsaac)
For more information about this release, please contact:
Greg Arsenault, Director - Marketing and Communications
Tel: 902-566-9615
Date: Tuesday, March 09, 2021
