This school year, more Jordan District elementary students may be playing with new friends thanks to “buddy benches” built by Jordan Applied Technology Center students.

Twelve schools, including Monte Vista, now have benches installed on their playgrounds. The goal: help kids make friends and feel included.

On the first day the Monte Vista bench was installed, student council fifth grader Ellie Miller saw it in action.

“I heard it had been installed so I went out to look and I saw a little girl go sit on the bench,” she said. “Then, another girl came up to her and asked if she wanted to draw with her. It was just really heart touching.”

Fifth-grader Addison Olsen, who also is on the student council, said she would use the bench to reach out to others.

“My hope is that my friends would join me and then, everyone can become friends and play together,” she said. “Even if you have friends, you can always have more.”

All 800 Monte Vista students learned how the benches were made and how to use them.

“We know that it is to be used, instead of throwing your coat there,” Ellie said. “They also talked about how some of them felt lonely sometimes so now that we have a buddy bench, people who feel lonely won't be lonely anymore. We want everyone to feel included.”

Assistant Principal Andrew Lovell praised the benches’ impact.

“Often, those kids can go unnoticed so now, the buddy bench between our two playgrounds can serve as a meeting place for kids to engage and create friendships,” he said.

More than 120 JATC students worked on the benches and were led by a student leadership team, beginning with a prototype in the fall. JATC welding instructor Blair Jensen said students from welding, construction and teacher education programs all contributed.

“Once my welding students had the prototype done, we ordered metal to build them and they cranked them out in January and February. In March, they went off to powder coating. While that was happening, the construction trades program was going around each of the schools and doing the concrete pads and the teacher education students scheduled assemblies. They taught them powerful lessons on how to use the buddy bench so they don't have to be lonely and they can find a friend to play with.”

The $7,500 project was funded mostly by a Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Community Impact Grant. 

“They have a community impact grant for meaningful service projects that will benefit our community,” said Jensen, who was the 2022 recipient of Harbor Freight’s Prize for Teaching Excellence. “Harbor Freight Tools for Schools is very passionate about supporting career and technical education.”

Jensen secured the grant in October 2024 and offered elementary school principals the free benches, selecting the first 12 which responded, including Bastian, Blackridge, Daybreak, Falcon Ridge, Heartland, Majestic, Mountain Point, Mountain Shadows, Oakcrest, Oak Leaf and Oquirrh elementaries in addition to Monte Vista.

Jordan Education Foundation contributed some funds to the project as well. 

Jensen felt strongly that it wasn’t his project, but rather one students could learn from and do.

“This needed to be a student-driven project,” he said. “I want students to learn the value of giving back; it’s one of the biggest things for me — if you want to be successful in life, you got to support others.”

Along the way, students gained real world, hands-on experience.

“They got to learn what it's like to work with different contractors to fulfill a contract and be able to communicate and gain leadership experience,” he said. “It was good to see such diverse kids who came together on this common project.”

Students from all eight Jordan high schools worked on the project. The student leadership president had personal motivation.

“One of his closest friends is somebody who he befriended on the buddy bench in his elementary school. He knows the buddy benches make a difference,” Jensen said, who plans to apply for the grant again in hopes of having students construct and install more benches around the district this school year. “Now, with benches at 12 schools, that’s about 7,000 children who will benefit and build a culture of kindness and belonging. Our students are looking forward to doing this project again.”