Twenty students showed off their hard work at 929 N Broadway in Green Bay after months of building a home as a part of the Bridges Construction & Renovation program. 

Families, friends and local leaders gathered to tour the house and celebrate the students on May 14, 2025. Students in the class represented East, Preble, Southwest, and West High Schools.

Bridges Construction & Renovation is an educational pathway within the Green Bay Area Public School District in partnership with NeighborWorks Green Bay, Greater Green Bay Habitat for Humanity, the Brown County Home Builders Association and Northeast Wisconsin Technical College. 

At the celebration, Bridges instructor Chris Ziegler presented students with a toolbelt full of tools and shared each student’s future plans. Superintendent Vicki Bayer, Ziegler, Pam Sylvester of the Brown County Home Builders Association, and NeighborWorks Green Bay president and CEO Noel Halvorsen spoke at the event.

Bridges offers students a community-based, hands-on learning experience in the construction and renovation industries.

Students work with professional contractors to learn about structural design, building safety, blueprint reading, rough and finish construction, modern design and home improvements. 

Students also explore the application of carpentry, masonry, home wiring, plumbing and architectural design.

A full class of students from East, Preble, Southwest and West High Schools are set to enroll in the Bridges Construction & Renovation program for the 2025-2026 school year. 

Students will be able to work on two projects next school year: a single family home at 158 N Maple Ave. and townhome project at 418 4th St. on Green Bay’s westside.

This year’s project was made possible by various community partnerships. NeighborWorks Green Bay worked with the City of Green Bay and GLC Minerals on the home at 929 N Broadway.  

This home was also made possible thanks to the first loan made through the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation’s Impact Investment Program. This program provides a low interest loan and saves NeighborWorks Green Bay thousands of dollars in construction loan interest costs. This also allows the new home to go to market at a significantly lower price than are otherwise available.