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Board approves up to $154,000 purchase of CAT simulator for CTE heavy-equipment training
Summary
Trustees authorized purchase of a CAT simulator at up to $154,000 to expand the Heavy Equipment Operator class, citing workforce demand and plans for student certification and potential evening adult-education use.
The Snake River School Board approved the purchase of a CAT heavy-equipment simulator for the district's CTE Heavy Equipment Operator class, authorizing expenditure up to $154,000 at its Aug. 20 meeting.
Superintendent Mark Kress and instructor/partner Gale Lim described the simulator as a cost-effective way to let students train on backhoe and dozer operations without using expensive field equipment. Lim said he designed the class curriculum based on the NCPR program and highlighted that after two semesters about 17 program participants earned the certification needed for entry-level employment. The simulator purchase includes a three-year subscription/warranty; district plans discussed using simulators during the day for students and offering adult-education classes in the evening.
Trustee Josh Sorensen moved to approve the purchase; Larin Mortimer seconded. The motion passed unanimously, 4–0.
Gale Lim told the board the simulators and curriculum will be "instrumental in teaching students first how to operate the equipment and second what to do with it once they are required to operate."
