WELDING PROGRAMS SEEK FUNDS TO MEET RISING DEMAND

By most accounts, having to expand your welder training facility by several thousand feet just to keep up with the influx of new students is a good problem to have—if you have the money. The Pennsylvania College of Technology finds itself in just such a quandary.

According to Dr. Davie Jane Gilmour, welding continues to be one of the school’s most popular majors. In fact, the welding program was the institution’s first to fill up this year. “We did a mini in-house renovation a year ago to take in an additional 15 or 20 students, and we still have more demand and a significant waiting list,” said Gilmour. Welding is so popular in this locale, at times there are over 40 students on the waiting list. Students actually end up taking other courses while they wait for slots in the welding ones to open up.

In response, the college’s board of trustees unanimously voted to accept a $2 million grant from the Economic Development Administration (EDA), which is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce (EDA). If awarded, the college can expand its welding facility by 22,000 square feet.