Del Mar College competition shows South Texas student interest in welding industry

Marisa Cortez, a Ray High School senior, and Melanie Gonzalez, a Harold T. Branch Academy junior, tackled Del Mar College’s Día de los Muertos welding competition Friday together — two welders working in tandem to 2G weld a large pipe.

It’s called a “brother-in-law" weld when two welders work on the same pipe. But maybe they should call it a “sister-in-law" weld, Cortez said.

Cortez and Gonzalez both have family members who weld and know one another through family connections. Both see a future for themselves as welders.

The two students just started welding a year ago, but they were one of only four teams that signed up to try out the two-person team competition. In other categories of the competition, nearly 200 welding students from across the Coastal Bend tried their hand at plate or pipe shielded metal arc welding or combination pipe gas tungsten arc welding and shielded metal arc welding.

Competitors came from 21 high schools across the region, as well as from programs at Del Mar College and other training programs like South Texas Vo-Tech Institute. Participants didn’t know ahead of time what position they’d be welding from.

“We went with that angle because when we go out and apply for work, we don’t what we’re welding,” Del Mar College assistant professor Samuel Garcia said. “We don’t know until the day of. We thought that would be a good curveball for the competition.”

Competitors in the plate category were tasked with a 4G weld, which is an overhead position. In the pipe category, it was a 5G weld, another common position.

Professional welders and local industry participated in the event as sponsors, vendors and judges.

“We wanted it to be a community event and to just invite everybody because we care a lot about our industry and we just feel like everybody has something to offer the industry,” Garcia said. “That’s what it’s about — trying to find these kids jobs and trying to get them job-ready.”

Del Mar College works with over 40 high schools throughout the Coastal Bend to offer dual credit programs. Welding is a popular program, attractive because there are many high-paying jobs in the industry, Del Mar College early college programs – dual credit assistant director Nicole Kindzirsky said.

In welding, dual credit students can earn a Level I or Level II certificate, or even an associate’s degree before graduating high school, depending on the program at their school.

This year, the college eliminated tuition and fees for all dual credit students.

For the competition, schools had a limit on how many students they could bring.

“You might be the best in your class, but the best of the other classes are here,” said Cortez, the Ray High School welder who competed in the brother-in-law category.

Matt Richard, operations manager at BDW Industrial Services and one of the competition judges, said the brother-in-law, two-person team category is similar to the work a welder might do on a pipeline.

“It’s going to be choreographed because you don’t want to burn one another or blind one another,” Richard said.

Having a team category in welding competitions is relatively new, Richard said.

“I’ve done probably 60 or 75 welding competitions, and we haven’t done this in any of them,” Richard said.

Beeville High School held a “weld-off” to determine who would compete, welding teacher Elyssa Lauer said. Each student in the competition had to earn their spot.

Beeville High School has about 250 welding students.

“It’s a really good industry to go into and there’s a lot of good money that can be made,” Lauer said. “It’s a challenge to go into this field because you’re always striving to be better than you were before. You’re always striving to make that next welder better.”

Corpus Christi ISD eighth graders get taste of high school programs

Garcia Arts and Education Center offers culture, fun at Día de los Muertos festival

What to know about dual credit programs in Corpus Christi ISD

This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Coastal Bend welders test skills at Del Mar College competition