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Like a Hot Glue Gun: Mobile Welding Trailer Brings Trades to Life
The two-week mobile welding opportunity at Cascade Academy, which wrapped up Oct. 2, represents years of partnership between Northwest Regional Education Service District and Portland Community College.
Two dozen students at a specialized school in Beaverton recently tried their hand at welding. Despite temperatures surging to the mid-90s during the first week, the students persevered.
A freshman named Dange (pronounced Dane-Juh) said he loved learning how to weld. “It reminded me of using a hot glue gun,” he says.
Dange, a freshman at Cascade Academy, received a micro-certificate from Portland Community College after completing a two-week welding program this fall. He said watching the electricity going back and forth in an arc and seeing two objects becoming one felt really nice. Photo by Tracey Goldner.
He’s planning to put his new skills to use alongside his dad on his family’s ostrich farm. He’s not sure professional welding is in his future, but says he’s open to it.
As Dange held up his freshly welded tee joint — when two pieces are joined at 90-degree angles — his instructor Joey Bottcher praised his work.
“All of your efforts have paid off,” he said enthusiastically, as Dange inspected his joint.
Portland Community College welding instructor Joey Bottcher talks about tee joints during a mobile welding lesson at Cascade and Pacific Academies. He said he’s excited to reach more students who don’t have built-in access to welding through their schools and introduce them to the concepts. Joey has welded parts for barges, bridges, nuclear reactors and components for Disneyland rides and loves sharing his skills and stories with students.
Kristen Faust is a transition specialist at Cascade Academy where Dange attends. The social emotional learning school enrolls students with intensive behavioral challenges. A partner school called Pacific Academy is co-located on the southwest Beaverton campus and supports students who are experiencing similar but different mental health challenges.Together, the schools enroll about 100 students and provide the additional support they need to participate in their education after struggling in their neighborhood schools.
As a transition specialist, Kristen helps prepare students for the day after they walk across the graduation stage. Students with disabilities and those with mental health challenges face higher rates of unemployment, so connecting them with opportunities and helping them imagine life after school helps make that transition to adulthood smoother.
She takes them on field trips and tours of local employers like KingPins, Vernier Science Education, New Seasons Market and Villa Sport Athletic Club, prepares them for job fairs, invites guest speakers to present at school, sets up internships and looks for training opportunities like the one the mobile welding trailer provides. For students interested in the trades, she encourages them to look into community college offerings, including those at Portland Community College.
“We wish there were more mobile trades and job training opportunities available for our students,” she says. “This mobile welding program is an example of how to do it well.”
She was pleased to report that half of the 24 students who began the program completed it. When a senior tried on the shoes, glasses, helmet and heavy leather coat and decided welding wasn’t for him, Kristen was thrilled. She told him that is an important step of career exploration: finding out what you don’t like as you search for the career you do.
Kieran was thrilled to complete the welding program at his school. “I am actually so happy to have this chance,” he says.
Kieran, a senior at Cascade and one of Dange's classmates, also loved the program.
He said he was afraid of the bright light at first but learned that the safety glasses protect against UV radiation and the helmet would protect his face and hair. After completing his first weld, Kieran said he couldn’t wait to share photos with his dad.
“He’s never had the chance to weld,” he said. He was so amazed that I’m learning how at school for free.
Carter, a senior at Pacific Academy, agrees with Kieran. He says the opportunity has been challenging yet fun. As an aspiring mechanic, Carter says he’ll need the welding skills he’s learning in his future career.
“I can bring these skills to lots of other places,” he says.