SOUTH SIOUX CITY | Justin Miller turned his life around last summer. He saw an ad in the newspaper for a short-term summer class in welding offered by Northeast Community College at the College Center in South Sioux City.
The cost was a couple hundred dollars for the training and he thought he’d give it a try. He was on a road to nowhere and he knew he needed to find something more productive than the assembly line work he was doing. At age 25, he decided he had nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Through the short-term class, the South Sioux City man found out that he was pretty good at welding . He wanted to learn more and make a living at skilled trade. He decided to enroll in the Northeast diploma program in welding that started this past fall. It is a nine-month program with full-time classes and labs. Although the cost was reasonable, he qualified for financial aid, so there was not a lot of out of pocket expense for him, which was important for Miller, his wife and two kids.
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Miller is halfway through his welding program with Northeast. He knows how to read blueprints and where to go to find the information he needs. His welds are held up as an example of excellence. He’s already proficient in tungsten-electrode inert gas welding due to his class, which gives him a step up in the welding world. He works part-time as a welder and field hand on the weekends for IDFI/3TSI. Working 25 hours a week and going to school full-time in a lab-intensive program is exhausting, but he knows the payoff will be worth it.
Northeast welding instructor Pat McCarville said he enjoys students, like Miller, who work hard to find a better life for themselves. “My hat’s off to Justin,” said McCarville. “He realized he needed to turn things around in his life and do things right and he’s doing just that.”
McCarville said the welding program he teaches is a good growing experience for the students. He said, “I do what I can to help, but I also push hard to be meticulous.”
“Well, that’s how it’s supposed to be. I want to do the best possible welds I can do on the job,” said Miller.
McCarville was instrumental in helping Miller get a part-time job while going to school. Miller is hopeful that will turn into a full-time job upon graduation and that he’ll have the American Welding Society certification as well as the OSHA 30 hour certificate to take with him from Northeast.
He wants to get a good five years of welding experience under his belt. He knows there are many different fields that he could branch off in to, such as working in welding equipment sales or repair, being a field superintendent for a welding crew or being a certified welding instructor. “Or I might become a welding educator,” said Miller.
Miller had never saw himself as an educator, but having found a mentor in McCarville, that may be a possibility.
Like Miller, McCarville never saw himself as an educator until just a few years ago. He worked 40 years as a welder, with the last 20 years at Rasmussen Mechanical Corp. in Sioux City. McCarville saw an ad in the paper for a welding adjunct instructor’s position for Northeast and applied. He thought he would try it on a part-time basis. That was five years ago. He became the full-time instructor after that first year and he looks forward to continuing his instruction in welding.
McCarville found that he enjoys the interaction with the students, getting to know them on a personal basis, and being able to help them grow personally and professionally.
Former students will stop by the Industrial Training building next to the College Center and visit with him. McCarville still works in the field doing some occasional welding, especially in the summer when he’s not teaching. It helps him stay current and in touch with people in the industry, which is another advantage for his students.
The Northeast Community College welding program has several options. The diploma program consists of two semesters, and runs from August to mid-May. This comprehensive program covers all aspects of welding including theory, math, metallurgy, and safety. The lab time is extensive which gives students plenty of time to practice and perfect their welds before testing and certification in May.
Two part-time programs are offered in the evening as well. One is an introductory course that gives new welders some basic skills. The other evening program is an advanced class which will help experienced welders gain more skills and become employable at a higher wage in areas such as stainless steel and pipe welding. Both are offered every semester with a new class starting each August and January.
Tuition at Northeast Community College is affordable and financial aid is available to those who qualify. Stop by and inquire at the College Center at 1001 College Way in South Sioux City or call McCarville at 402-494-9053.
