Like a lot of kids, when Blake Bushlack was a little boy, he was enthralled with blocks, pieces that moved, interlocking pieces that snapped together and anything that allowed him to let his imagination run wild with his personal creations.

When he went to his new elementary school, West Ridge Elementary, he hoped they had building blocks — lots of them. He loved playing with all kinds of pieces and parts he could hitch together and make into something completely different. What he didn’t realize at the time was that as he played, he was learning.

Not only did West Ridge have more blocks than he could hold at once, he was encouraged to pick through the pieces, figure out how each one worked and then to use them as tools for learning a variety of subjects and concepts like math, physics, design and art.

What Blake knew was that when he used building materials, he could make better sense of some of the things teachers talked about. Once he started building, he wanted to know more about how to make his creations better.

Blake was thrilled when he heard about an after-school program that involved building things and using mechanical components. He dove in and soon had a project in which he learned how to program a mechanical “brain.” Using Lego bricks to put together the various parts of the brain, he connected it to a computer that brought the creation to life with motors moving all of his connected pieces.

Now Blake’s young mind was spinning with all the different possibilities he imagined using bricks and automated motors. He had just discovered mechanical engineering. It changed how he saw the world.

Growing up, his curiosity and love of creating and problem-solving with pieces, parts and components never waned. It intensified. At Prairie View Middle School, Blake learned more about the STEM Field through his STEM lab teacher, Mr. Seifried. Both Mr. Seifried and Mr. Delgado, the principal of PVMS at the time, supported him with this learning and played an essential role in his success.

By the time he got to high school at Prairie View High, he wanted to take his skills to the next level. That’s when he found the school’s Technology Student Association and Robotics Club which put him together with others who had similar fascinations and ways of thinking. Collaborating with his peers and hearing their ideas about how to approach a project, broadened his perspectives and his own capabilities.

Having stayed in contact with Mr. Delgado after middle school, Blake would also reach out to him for help when looking to gain a better understanding of the real world application of the field he so much enjoyed, especially when working with the 27J School Construction Department during his high school years.

It was no surprise when Blake announced his plans to go to Colorado State University to pursue a degree in mechanical engineering after high school.

College provides a new level of hands-on learning and practical experience. But Blake got a lot of real world experiences while still in middle school and high school. He believed in helping others and supporting those for whom he cared. For example, after moving on to middle school, Blake liked to go back to West Ridge and help staff get the school looking really good for the fall opening each year. He’d powerwash fences, help sell baked goods at the school’s bake sale and put his technology skills to work helping teachers solve computer and other technology challenges.

Blake was quite popular at West Ridge long after he moved on from the school. Staff was grateful to him for always lending a cheerful and very intelligent hand to help the school and its staff. But the admiration was mutual. Blake was eager to give back to the school that inspired and developed his young mind as a builder of the future.

He recognizes the gift he received from West Ridge, Prairie View Middle, and Prairie View High School as they opened his eyes to more of the engineering world he already embraced. He knows 27J Schools makes the same kinds of discoveries possible for students throughout the district.

“I believe in 27J Schools because they do what they can with limited resources while still ensuring that they are providing students with a valuable learning experience.”