El Rito, New Mexico, USA
Northern New Mexico College
NNMC’s Adobe Construction Program is unique – the USA’s only full-fledged certification program in building with adobe. It generally takes two semesters of classroom and field work to earn a “Certificate in Adobe Construction”. While focusing primarily on a hands-on, apprenticeship-type experience, the program includes sufficient classroom instruction to ensure complete, critical coverage of all aspects of building adobe structures. Students receive hands-on experience through working at local home-construction sites, renovating houses and working on individual projects in the department’s adobe laboratory.
Teaching
In addition to the live instruction classes offered in El Rito, New Mexico, we are now also offering adobe classes via the internet. This is a great way to get started with adobe construction regardless of your location.
Curriculum for live and internet instruction is based on both lecture sections as well as extensive hands-on laboratory sections. Some of the classes offered are:
- Traditional Building Design
- Interior Finishes (Mud Plaster)
- Adobe (Mud Brick) Wall Construction
- Exterior Finishes
- Foundation and Floor Construction for Adobe Structures
- Passive Solar Heating of Adobe Structures
- Adobe Remodel Theory and Practice
- Roof/Ceiling Design and Construction
- Clay Oven Design and Construction
- Carpentry Math and Blueprint Reading