Jonathan Holmes couldn’t conceal his enthusiasm for Ripley Elementary School’s modern new lab, even if he wanted to. His near-constant smile gives him away as he shows off student projects like a solar-powered weather reporting station.

Holmes taught math at Ripley, about an hour north of Memphis, Tennessee, before becoming director of the school’s lab in 2025. The sophisticated workshop is equipped with state-of-the-art tools made possible through the Ford Future Builders Lab.

Ford has invested $610,000 to help create five Future Builders Labs at K-12 schools in West Tennessee, home to the company’s BlueOval City campus.

The labs, which launched last year as part of a partnership between Ford Philanthropy and Ford Community Relations, use hands-on experience with 21st-century equipment like 3D printers and laser cutters to teach teamwork and problem solving. The company worked with devX to provide training and curriculum to give teachers more resources for helping students. 

“It’s been very inspiring seeing all this unfolding,” Holmes said.

The labs are also meant to introduce students to career tracks they might not otherwise consider, especially in skilled trades. For Ford, the labs fit into a broader push to support what President and CEO Jim Farley calls the “Essential Economy” — industries that move, fix, and build the country. 

“Innovation is inspired by hands-on learning,” Holmes said. “I want my students to see themselves as engineers and problem solvers, not just kids completing assignments.”

The lab at Ripley Elementary is unique because it is the only one of the five in Tennessee that is not part of a high school. The labs are part of Ford’s larger, $11.7 million Ford Good Neighbor Plan in the region.

Every student at Ripley Elementary, from third to fifth grade, gets a turn in the lab through class rotations, Holmes said.

The biggest project so far is a mobile, solar-powered device that reports live weather conditions, much like monitoring stations at airports. Holmes uses the machine to teach kids about temperature, dew point, and barometric pressure. Because the device sits on wheels, students call it the “weather cart.”

Starting this new academic year, Holmes said, he wants to elevate the project and turn it into a smart system.

“I’ve got some plans to win a really big STEM competition, but I don’t want to give away my secret sauce just yet,” he said with a laugh.

Holmes said the lab is helping draw families from rural Lauderdale County, which has a population of about 25,000.

The school hosted a STEM night and invited parents to see interactive stations in the lab with activities like simulating a volcano eruption with vinegar and baking soda, as well as watching small robots programmed to navigate mazes. Students also worked on a sign with LED lights powered with electricity students generated with coils and magnets.

Jessica Newman, Ripley Elementary’s principal, said the lab inspires all students. The hands-on work last year was particularly successful in building confidence in students who struggled in other classes.

“When I’m having a bad day, I walk into the lab to see the excitement,” she said. “It is a place where everybody has the opportunity to be successful.”

For Holmes, working in the lab has been professionally and personally invigorating. As an expression of gratitude for the lab, he even painted a mural of company founder Henry Ford on a wall there.

Holmes, who is from the neighboring town of Dyersburg, worked various jobs and owned a business before deciding he wanted something more rewarding out of life. He wanted to teach, so he returned to college for a master’s degree in 2017. The new school year is his fifth one teaching.

Holmes has a deep love for math, he said, but noticed that not all his students shared that passion. The lab, however, is a different story. Everyone loves it, and that shared joy makes it exciting for him to come to work every day, he said.

Newman has also seen a transformation in Holmes. He had seemed to be yearning for something more in his career. From the start, she believed he was the best person to run the lab.

“He just took this, and he ran with it,” she said. “This is the perfect fit for him.”

Now, with a new school year under way, Holmes is looking ahead to a fresh challenge: Helping his students build a walking robot — a tiger, the school’s mascot.

“I’ve been into programming for probably the last 10 years,” he said, “so this is just right up my alley.”

Holbrook Mohr is a contributing writer based in Brandon, Mississippi.