Arkansas Institute for Building Preservation Trades

About the Arkansas Institute

The Mission of AIBPT

The AIBPT mission is to provide academic and practical education in the traditional building preservation trades.

To achieve this mission the Institute offers a balanced program that incorporates three essential elements. The first component is a relevant course of academic classroom study. The second is a rigorous course of practical workshop projects. The third element is ample access to open workshop time for mastering the practical and theoretical skills. By these means students are exposed to:

• Preservation theory and principles that guide work on historic buildings.
• Historical perspective on architecture and construction technologies.
• Issues impacting building deterioration.
• Practical building skills, tools, and materials.
• The methods for managing restoration projects.

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The AIBPT Facilities

The McRae Building Located in the heart of Helena's downtown historic district at 415 Ohio Street is the 1919 McRae Brothers Hardware Company warehouse, the home of the Institute. The three floor building has over 21,000 square feet of dedicated space with purpose-built facilities. The rehabilitation of the building provided for new workshops, classrooms, offices, tool and material storage, computer lab, library, display space, restrooms, and vehicle parking. The fall of 2004 starts a third phase of rehabbing to provide a large demonstration classroom, more workshop space, and façade restoration. The building's heritage, location, and industrial architecture all combine to make it an ideal home for the Institute.

The Moore-Hornor House Nearby the Institute is the 1859 Moore-Hornor House. It is owned by the Delta Cultural Center (a museum of the Department of Arkansas Heritage) and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. When the house came under fire in the 1863 Battle of Helena it survived and went on to serve as a focal point in the community until 1994 when a fire severely damaged the structure. Following structural stabilization the building was donated to the Department of Arkansas Heritage which began the process of restoration in 2001.

The Institute has conducted Field Lab classes at the house that have included window restoration, stair repair, molding replication and reconstruction of the barn. Participating in real restoration projects of this caliber provide the best possible practical restoration experiences for our students.

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The AIBPT Director

Jeffrey Goetz is the director of the Arkansas Institute for Building Preservation Trades at Phillips Community College of the University of Arkansas. Mr. Goetz has consulted on preservation trades curriculum and program development and was Technical Director for Inspired Partnerships, an organization in Chicago, IL that provided building restoration project management skills to denominations of all faiths. He has participated in an exterior restoration project at Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater and has studied stained glass techniques in Siena, Italy. Mr. Goetz also taught at the Building Preservation Program at Belmont Technical College and, while there, administered a Department of the Army Legacy Grant in window restoration conducted at both Fort Drum and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, NY. He has personally undertaken the complete restoration of his own 1886 rowhouse in Wheeling, WV and initiated the creation of a public Preservation Reading Room in the West Virginia Independence Hall. Mr. Goetz directs and instructs the programs of the Institute. He believes a program of relevant academics and rigorous practical skills education is the key to producing the most qualified artisans.

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