Teacher's Story to Become Inspirational Film

Shop class in high school may have just gotten a little more inspiring.

Engineer-turned-teacher Simon Hauger used a positive attitude and an unorthodox curriculum to instill personal change in his students, most of whom come from troubled backgrounds in the inner city.

Hauger started a project with a group of his West Philadelphia High School students to have them build a green car.

In addition to building the electric vehicle, the students also spent time working on public relations and learning the right business skills to present their car.

Over the years, the teams have gained top honors at the annual Tour de Sol, a national green car competition where they beat out other teams from colleges and universities.

"It's a privilege for me to be able to develop relationships with teens from the city," Hauger said. "Many of the students come from difficult circumstances and I love working with them."

Hauger explained that becoming a Christian when he was in college helped reorganize his priorities so that he was focused on helping people.

He added that the "joy of working with our hands and minds to solve real problems is inspirational."

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Hauger's inspirational story is currently being turned into a screenplay for a possible film.