Interview with Jennifer McNally, Instructor, Boatbuilding and Restoration Program

What’s the origin of your interest in boat building?

Jennifer McNally(JM): I grew up on Lake Erie, where my grandmother had a cottage, and every summer we were always around boats. In third grade, I did a mosaic sail boat. I always liked working with my hands, even in college, better than the academic areas I studied.

What was the first boat you built, besides the mosaic boat?

JM: An Aleutian kayak, which is a skin-on-frame kayak.

Why this boat?

JM: It was a program boat at the Wooden Boat School in Maine. I was in graduate school, studying chemistry, and I knew that was not for me. So, I was procrastinating, instead of doing homework, and looking on the Web at boat building sites. I eventually attended the Landing School for boat building.

Your story is one of the famous Landing School ads for
“Cure for the Common Career.”

JM: That was the first ad campaign they ran.

So what’s the connection between chemistry and wooden boat building?

JM: None. Technically, I guess there is kind-of a connection related to solvents, paints, glues, and finishes.

What do you enjoy about teaching wooden boat building?

JM: Seeing the light come on when the student gets it. Some people are natural at this trade, but there are others that really have to work at it. I like the process of getting the latter ones to the point of proficiency. I teach students who have to work so hard to get it—but, with desire and persistence, can achieve their goals at IYRS; and I like that process very much.

Why did you want to work at IYRS?

JM: My husband and I were moving to the area from Florida, and my mother-in-law said, “Take this job.” Seriously, I was impressed with Clark Poston, our program director, and working with him combines my interest in teaching and restoring classic boats.

What’s the toughest part of your job?

JM: The hardest part is making someone do something over again. For example, during planking the Beetles, a student can spend hours carving out one plank, and because of an imperfection in the wood, s/he has to do it all over. These are very challenging boats for most students.

If you could restore a boat now, what would it be and why?

JM: Everybody at IYRS has a favorite. I don’t, but I guess I would like to build or restore a Herreshoff Columbia Life Boat because it reminds me of some of the boats on the lake where I grew up.

IYRS has gone through a transformation these past three years with new programming and growth. What do you like about the school’s present direction?

JM: I like that there is a place where more people will have access to being trained to work in the marine trades. But for me, personally, the school’s transformation has pushed me to becoming a better teacher and manager. I am helping to produce both a skilled tradesman and a boat at the same time. The challenge is in always trying to balance the two.