South Plains College held a ribbon cutting celebrating their recently completed welding expansion Wednesday morning, at their Levelland campus.
Conducting the welcome and introductions was Dean of Technical Education Rob Blair.
“Due to faculty professionalism, student friendly atmosphere, quality instruction and first rate facilities, the welding technology program is one of South Plains College’s premier programs,” said Blair. “That professionalism, quality instruction and student focused atmosphere were established by people such as Pete Strasoner and continued with Jimmy Stratton as department chair, Larry Carter as program coordinator and the program faculty located in Levelland, Lubbock and Plainview welding technology programs.”
Blair explained that yearafter- year, the welding technology program has developed a student waiting list because the program has lacked the number of stations to support the number of students interested in attending.
Blair added the history of the facility in his opening speech, explaining the Levelland facility had been constructed in three different phases. Where the desks and classroom area that is used was first constructed in 1983, which also consisted of 20 welding stations.
The next section was constructed in 2004 in an expansion project that added 59 stations.
“Today we celebrate the programs expansion to 80 stations, which was coordinated with industry standard equipment and has raised the welding technology programs excellence to a new level,” said Blair. “Starting this past Spring semester, 80 welding stations allowed the Levelland welding program to establish an additional cohort 16 welding majors and will allow SPC to provide up to 21 additional graduates per semester to support local welding industries.”
When it comes to welding, Blair explained that the program has set a high-bar with the expansion of the facility.
South Plains College President Robin Satterwhite recognized the SPC Board of Regents for their attendance of the ribbon cutting.
“The welding program is a integral part of all of our technical education programs at South Plains with 22 programs,” said Satterwhite. “The great thing about these programs is we are educating students to move directly into high-demand fields where they are almost 100% employed across all of our different programs. The welding program particularly with this expansion will help meet industry needs with some of our employees and industry partners.”
Satterwhite pointed out a few leading supporters for the expansion with Jody Brooks and his wife Melanie.
“We couldn’t have done this without your vision, your support and without your recognition of how to expand South Plains College here in Levelland and expand the programs that we can best meet the needs of the industry and our industry partners,” said Satterwhite. “We are extremely grateful.”
Satterwhite also added that the college is grateful to the faculty as they cannot have excellent facilities without excellent faculty to get the great results they have continuously had.
Chairman for the Industrial Technology Department Jimmy Stratton spoke on the details with the expansion.
“With the courses that we teach and the opportunities we present to graduates wouldn’t happen if we didn’t have the support we have,” explained Stratton.
Stratton added that the expansion added an additional 9,000 square feet in addition to 21 new welding booths which are all equipped with work stations and cutting equipment for each individual student. Also added were 31 new pieces of equipment. There are 24 state-of-the-art multiprocess welding machines and seven supporting pieces of equipment for cutting materials, preparation and access for students to go out into the workforce with the most experience as possible with equipment used in the industry today.”
In regard to enrollment, the Levelland campus has seven fulltime faculty members which allows a total capacity of 112 students. As of Monday afternoon, the Levelland campus is fully enrolled in addition to having to create a waiting list.
Of those 112 students at the Levelland campus, the Fall 2023 semester will contain 80 students in the morning section and 32 students in the afternoon section. Of those students, the program will have 31 potential December graduates with either certificates or their associate degree. For May graduation, they will have an additional 81 potential graduates with certificates or with their associate degree in the upcoming 112 students enrolled.
Brooks also spoke at the end of the ceremony explaining the many relationships he had developed working with partners and people over the years in the industry.
“When you are recognized and able to do things like this, it is not about me, but it is about all the people you have had in your life, the mentors you have had, education opportunities you had and all the people who helped you get to where you are,” said Brooks. “I want to thank all the people who have worked for Allied and the individuals who have worked for me in the past because someday the students that are here will help somebody do what I was able to do or be a part of that.”
Brooks ended his speaking portion by thanking his family and individuals he had worked with over the years.