This semester, Upper School students have a new fine arts elective: Woodworking, taught by technical theater teacher Will Turbyne. 

When Turbyne came to Greenhill in 2020, he proposed the idea of a woodworking class but the demand wasn’t high enough. For the next three years, Turbyne maintained his role as the tech theater instructor, but he reached out to his colleagues in the Fine Arts department again in 2023. 

“Once it was finalized that the class was going to be introduced, I knew that I was going to love teaching it,” Turbyne said. 

The course launched as a small pilot in the spring semester with eight students. According to Turbyne, the class was well recieved, prompting the Fine Arts department to officially add woodworking to the Upper School course offerings for the 2025-26 school year.

This semester, eight students are enrolled in the class. Turbyne said woodworking differs from many other courses offered at Greenhill by emphasizing hands-on learning.

“We are getting the students to work with their hands in a way that isn’t available in other classes,” Turbyne said. “In this room students are not working on computers or devices, they are making something beautiful and functional out of raw lumber.”  

Over the past two months, students have learned to use basic woodworking tools and have begun creating functional objects, like cutting boards and boxes.  

“Woodworking quickly became one of my favorite classes,” freshman Baer Kelly said. “It’s the one place in school where you can actually see your hard work take shape in front of you.”  

Throughout the year, student works will be displayed in the Marshall Family Performing Arts Center lobby, and a special showcase will be made for the class at the end of the semester.