Woodshop teacher Mucio Vidales and his student builders pose in front of the exterior of the tiny home during a construction day on the Nicolas Junior High campus. (Photos courtesy of the Fullerton School District) 
Woodshop teacher Mucio Vidales supervises students and district staff as they work on the frame of the tiny home during the early stages of construction. 
Fullerton School District Superintendent Dr. Bob Pletka speaks during the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the district’s second student-built tiny home on May 22. 
A view of the opposite side of the kitchen reveals a sink, stove and air conditioning unit inside the 192-square-foot tiny home built by students from Nicolas Junior High. 
An interior view of the tiny home shows the kitchen area and stairs leading up to a loft with a sleeping space, all designed and built by eighth-grade students. 
The exterior of the student-built tiny home is shown at Nicolas Junior High. The home sits on a trailer and will be relocated near Orangethorpe Elementary School this summer. 
Fullerton School District Board of Education Trustee Ruthi Hanchett tours the student-built tiny home during the May 22 open house and ribbon-cutting ceremony at Nicolas Junior High. 
A poster titled “Tiny Home Team 2025” features Woodshop II teacher Mucio Vidales and portraits of each student builder from Nicolas Junior High who contributed to the construction of the school’s second tiny home.
Quick look: Students from Nicolas Junior High School constructed a second 192-square-foot tiny home to support families experiencing homelessness. The fully furnished structure will be relocated near Orangethorpe Elementary this summer, and a new construction academy is planned to expand the program in the coming school year.
A new cohort of eighth-grade students from Nicolas Junior High School in the Fullerton School District has completed construction of a second tiny home designed to provide temporary housing for local families experiencing homelessness.
The district hosted an open house and ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 22 to showcase the 192-square-foot structure, which will be moved this summer to a property near Orangethorpe Elementary School, where it will sit adjacent to the district’s first student-built home.
The project is part of Fullerton School District’s ongoing Tiny Home Project, a hands-on career and technical education initiative led by Nicolas Junior High woodshop teacher Mucio Vidales and supported by Pablo Díaz, the district’s director of innovation and instructional support. Both were named to the Orange County Register’s 2024 list of the 125 Most Influential People for their roles in launching the program.
This year’s effort involved 24 students enrolled in Vidales’ woodshop II class who spent months learning essential construction skills while working collaboratively to build a fully functional home featuring a kitchen, bedroom and living area. The home will serve as transitional housing for a district family receiving support under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.
“Today, we celebrate the home we built, the skills we learned, and the memories we’ll never forget even if we do still have sawdust in our backpacks,” said student Melissa Flores, during opening remarks at the event.
Fellow student Leilani Ortiz reflected on the project’s unique impact.
“I am heading to high school knowing that I helped someone and am a part of a community,” Ortiz said. “It just makes me proud.”
Project impact and future expansion
The first home, completed in 2024, has housed a family since September. According to the district, the student living there has maintained perfect attendance this school year, supported by the stability of housing and access to school-based and community resources.
District leaders say the Tiny Home Project has grown from a single idea into a broader model for student-led innovation and community service.
Plans are now underway to pilot a construction academy at Nicolas Junior High that would allow students to dedicate two class periods daily to construction education, including lessons in business management, accounting, electrical work and plumbing. Representatives from the local carpenters union have expressed interest in supporting the initiative.
Superintendent Dr. Bob Pletka praised the program’s broader community impact during the May 22 event.
“That’s how it begins,” Pletka said. “It begins with all of us doing what we can, so a big shout-out to everybody in our community that has been a part of this project that has changed the lives of not only the current family living in our first tiny home and our students here but changed the lives for all of us through the impact this will have on our community.”
To learn more about the Fullerton School District’s Tiny Home Project, visit bit.ly/tinyhomeprogress.