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Clear skies. Low 57F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph..
Clear skies. Low 57F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph.
Clear skies. Low 57F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph..
Clear skies. Low 57F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph.
Palmdale High School sophomore Gabriel Gallo works on a gas welding or oxy-acetylene project in teacher Travis Widick’s class. Antelope Valley Union High School District started a dedicated welding program at Palmdale and Littlerock high schools, this year. Widick splits his time between the two schools.
Palmdale High School sophomore Gabriel Gallo works on a gas welding or oxy-acetylene project in teacher Travis Widick’s class. Antelope Valley Union High School District started a dedicated welding program at Palmdale and Littlerock high schools, this year. Widick splits his time between the two schools.
PALMDALE — Antelope Valley Union High School District has started a dedicated welding program at Palmdale and Littlerock high schools.
The program is in its first year. The eventual goal is for students who successfully complete the program to graduate with a certificate in welding.
The District started the program on the advice of engineers who serve as advisors to the District. The District previously offered welding as one component of the former Ag Mechanics class.
“We had several engineers that said there’s a benefit of welding to ag, but welding really should be in the engineering program,” Betsy McKinstry, director of Career Technical Education, College and Career, said.
The District is looking to build a strong welding pathway for students that will include advanced welding certifications and an articulation agreement with Antelope Valley College where students can earn college credit, she said.
“We are looking at upgrading the shop and also to ensure that we have enough equipment for kids,” McKinstry said.
The District’s Career Technical Education program funding will go toward growing the program.
Teacher Travis Widick, a 2009 graduate of Palmdale High School, learned how to weld in the Ag Mechanics class with former ag teacher John Calvert, who retired, last year. Widick splits his time each day between the Palmdale and Littlerock campuses.
“A lot of the students are very excited,” Widick said.
Students who had Ag Mechanics, last year, did not get to try welding, or the previous year due to safety restrictions over the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We had the pandemic and then we had kind of a year of transition that there really wasn’t a specialized teacher, and then Travis came,” McKinstry said.
Widick started welding professionally at 18 years old, partially from Calvert’s instruction. He worked in aerospace. Most recently, he worked at the University of California, Los Angeles helping students with research and development. He did not start thinking about teaching welding until about three years ago. He was in talks to teach an adult school welding class. He has an educator’s license and inspector’s license in welding. He worked as a welder for about 14 years, including school.
His first job paid $9 an hour. Some of the top of the line welders can earn up to $300,000 a year. Welding jobs can also include travel to places such as Dubai or Canada.
“As far as taking the class itself, my dad was a plumber,” Widick said. “I just kind of grew up in the world.”
Welding is a valuable skill, he added.
“Basically, nowadays, any industry in manufacturing uses welding, mainly aerospace, and construction and pipeline industry, and then just general manufacturing jobs,” Widick said. “A lot of people my age are not picking it up; there’s a huge void that is predicted to grow, in the next 10 years.”
Widick said the estimates predict a shortage of 500,000 to one million welders over the next 10 years.
According to the American Welding Society, an average of 84,000 welding jobs will need to be filled annually, between 2022 to 2025.
“When we have a formalized class like this in instruction, or AVC or anybody, what we’re really doing is moving them along quicker than if you were to sit at home and try on your own,” Widick said. “You might make 1,000 mistakes before you go, ‘Oh, hey, I get it.’ So we try to guide them little by little instead of having them just weld all day aimlessly.”
The class, Manufacturing and Prototyping, is open to students from ninth to 12th grade. Students get about 40 minutes of hands-on welding per class. As Widick spoke, a handful of students stood in the welding booths working on projects. The bright light from the arc welders glowed behind the dark curtains of the welding booths.
“The ones in there right now, I can’t get them out sometimes,” Widick said.
The goal is for students to get a job after graduation and successful completion of the program.
Widick hopes to add an internship program for older students. Other longterm goals include the addition of an apprenticeship program.
The students’ safety gear includes helmets, gloves and special fire resistant coats.
Junior Joseph Pope showed off a welding pad he worked on with lines for different welds.
“It’s very exciting,” Pope said. “You can do so many things with welding. It’s really like a gift; I’m learning so much stuff. I’m happy because I get to do something like this.”
Pope added he would like to become a police officer, construction worker or welder after graduation.
“This is teaching me so many things about metal — how to work metal; how to take care of the metal and how to weld things together,” Pope said.
Senior Jeffrey Morales worked with Pope on some welds. He joined the class to explore career options.
“I’m going to have to find a job so I thought, ‘You know, I’m going to try out welding; it looks fun,’ ” Morales said.
Morales added he plans to attend Antelope Valley College, where he could further his welding education.
Sophomore Giselle Orellana is part of Palmdale High’s Engineering Academy and the Solar Falcon Race Team
“I thought learning how to weld would be fun and beneficial for the solar car and other things like that,” she said. “I like being here and getting to do more hands-on activities.”
Sophomore Gabriel Gallo worked on a gas welding or oxy-acetylene project.
“It’s really interesting to know how to weld and how people made things you see every day,” Gallo said. “It’s just a good skill to have.”
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Great to see...and a skill that will pay really good money.
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