North House Folk School

It’s been one year since North House Folk School launched Build With Purpose, a program that gets student-built timber frames into the hands of regional nonprofits. Since the earliest days of the folk school, North House’s timber frames have gone to community organizations, but through word-of-mouth arrangements. Now, through Build With Purpose, any nonprofit can apply for a timber frame, helping connect with mission-driven organizations with a hand-built structure made to last. 

“It’s been exciting to see this program come to life, and to see students’ work go to organizations that are making a difference,” said Jessa Frost, North House Program Director. “Nonprofits in the Build With Purpose program get to purchase a timber frame at a significantly reduced rate, and students know that their work is going to a good cause.”

2024 was the first official year of Build With Purpose, and one timber frame receipient was Gale Woods Farm, a working educational farm in Minnetrista, MN. Tim Reese, Farm Supervisor at Gale Woods Farm, knows a thing or two about North House timber frames—the organization raised its first student-built timber frame May 2022, and Reese participated in the class that cut the timbers. 

“The first frame we raised is a shelter in our teaching garden, which school groups and visitors from the public use,” Reese said. “So when it came time to rebuild our chicken coop I was excited about doing another timber frame.”

Raising the timbers that were cut in the Basic Timber Framing class in July 2025

Gale Woods Farm was the first organization to apply for a frame in the new Build With Purpose program. They were accepted, and in the summer of 2025 built a brand-new run that extends from outside of their chicken coop. The new frame is in one of the most visible locations on the farm, and not only gives the chickens a beautiful space to occupy, but also connects visitors with the daily work of the farm. 

“We acquired this property in 2000, and the first chicken coop we built lasted all of 12 years,” Reese said. “This structure is going to outlast my tenure, and probably anyone’s tenure here, and in the end cost us about the same as hiring a contractor to put up a 2x4 stick frame.”

Adding the roof on the chicken coop

A unique part of the Build With Purpose program is that the Build With Purpose purchase price includes one spot in the timber framing class for a representative from the organization. In this case, Gale Woods’ carpenter took the class and helped raise the structure. 

“We also got the benefit of our carpenter becoming even more skilled at timber framing, and during the raising was able to show the other carpenters these skills,” Reese said. 

But ultimately, what made the timber frame a good fit was the fact that so many people—from North House students to volunteers who helped raise the frame to donors who supported its purchase—were part of the process. For Reese, it was a tangible way of seeing Gale Woods’ story come alive. 

“As a government organization, it’s easy for our buildings to feel institutional. This structure has soul, not only because it’s beautiful but because it was handmade and because it was done by people in the community,” Reese said. “It’s a public place where people can come 365 days a year and say, ‘Hey, I think I cut that joint right there,’”

The timber framing season resumes in spring 2026, and applications for 2026 projects are open now! Learn more and apply here. Organizations that are interested in being considered for future years are encouraged to fill out the application form and check the box to indicate future interest.