Student James Jenkins follows his dream to ACBA
June 3, 2015
CHARLESTON, SC – Some careers are made by choice, others by birth.
Many years have flown by since James Jenkins converted his dad’s left over 2x4s into an airplane glider. “I threw it from the back window to see if it could fly. It wasn’t aerodynamic,” Jenkins said, remembering his first wood project at age six. Growing up, James had access to the best wood scraps from his father’s business, Jenkins Home Improvement Company. “As far back as I can remember, I’ve always been on a job site with my dad,” said Jenkins, referring to the elder George Jenkins.
Jenkins, 19, just graduated from the carpentry program at Garrett Academy of Technology. He will matriculate this fall at the Charleston-based American College of the Building Arts [ACBA] on a full scholarship studying architectural carpentry. Two ACBA full scholarships are set aside annually for Charleston County School District [CCSD] students.
Jenkins applied to ACBA last fall after two campus visits: one in 2013 arranged by Chad Vail, CCSD Career and Technology Team Associate; and again in November 2014, facilitated by his Garrett Academy teachers Anthony Wilson and Dan Olin. “I have searched for two years for a college that I felt was right for me,” he stated during the interview for this story.
Nicknamed ‘Mr. Fix-it’ by Garrett Academy teachers, James Jenkins is a perfect fit for ACBA’s intensive, year-round, academic environment that also includes eight-week summer internships each of the three summers between a student’s freshman and senior years. ACBA is the only private college in the nation that offers a Bachelors of Applied Sciences in the Building Arts with the following craft specializations: Architectural Carpentry, Architectural Stone, Forged Architectural Iron, Timber Framing, Plaster, and Masonry. In addition to these disciplines, ACBA fully integrates a liberal arts and sciences education across the curriculum, and it encourages historic preservation.
Jenkins is accustomed to blending his school studies with hands-on practical work. He’s presently a part-time worker at Gallery Chuma. As a carpenter-apprentice in the family business, Jenkins has learned to do demolition work and room additions, to replace rotted floors and jack-up floors, light electrical work and much more. He can handle hard work while maintaining his sense of ease and humor.
According to Mike Whack, Diversity Outreach and Recruitment Coordinator at ACBA, Jenkins showed foresight and career-focus during the admissions interview. “We saw in him, a well-rounded, promising student, who had been preparing all of his life for this opportunity to attend a college such as ACBA,” Whack said. A driving force behind James’ steady progress is his mother, Sonyza Whiteside, who currently works at Fielding Home for Funerals and is a former educator and carpenter.While working a summer project outdoors a few years ago, Jenkins recalled that “it was so hot, my soda was bubbling in the bottle”. During a spring day roofing project, Jenkins was wearing a mask to shield his allergies from the pollen, when a neighbor called the cops thinking he was about to commit robbery. When the police arrived James jokingly explained, “I’m not here to steal a buck, I’m here to make a buck.”
Outside of his part-time job and carpentry studies, Jenkins has been actively involved in extra-curricular and community activities. He played drums for the Garrett Academy drum line, and was a right tackle on the football team at West Ashley Middle School. At a young age, Jenkins learned to play the violin at Midland Park Elementary and, with his mother’s strong insistence, continued private lessons at home. He grew up attending both Nehemiah Ministries Church and Life Center Cathedral, where he sang with the youth choir. Jenkins currently attends Sea Island Church of the Nazarene.
In his ACBA admissions essay, James wrote: “From a very early age, I wanted to build and restore homes, just as my father did. Now I wish to follow my dream wherever it takes me.” Jenkins said that he has already drawn the blueprints for his dream house. In a way, his whole life thus far has been a blueprint, from day one.
