New Programs in Welding and Entrepreneurship Begin Next Week

A student works in the new welding lab, which has seen significant upgrades thanks to a substantial investment from the Duke Energy Foundation in 2015. Edgecombe Community College will offer a new degree program in welding this fall.

New programs designed to prepare students for job opportunities await Edgecombe Community College students when fall classes begin on Thursday, August 17.

A new Welding program will help students develop industry-standard skills for welding and metalworking industries, construction, manufacturing, and fabrication.

According to Doug Parrish, department chair of Industrial and Technical Trades, a Duke Energy Foundation grant of nearly $250,000 has enabled the college to purchase new equipment, improve lighting, and upgrade the welding lab, including the addition of twelve welding booths with state-of-the-art ventilation.

“The new equipment is automatic and high tech,” Parrish says. “We have new digitally controlled, multi-function welders which provide more precise control over the heat of the arc and create neater, stronger welds.”

For a number of years, ECC has offered four certification programs in welding through Continuing Education: ARC, TIG, MIG, and SMAW welding. All four programs are certified by the American Welding Society.

According to Parrish, through the new Welding program on the Curriculum side of the house, courses will be more accessible to Edgecombe high school students since they will be offered in the afternoon during high school third and fourth periods when students are bussed to the ECC campus to take classes.

Students will learn MIG, TIG, and stick welding processes and will study print reading, metallurgy, and welding inspection, among other topics.

“In an industry that is expected to increase fifteen percent over the next ten years, welders are and will continue to be in high demand,” Parrish adds.

Entrepreneurship is another exciting new program that will benefit students who want to start a small business or who want to grow as self-employed business owners.

Course work includes entrepreneurial concepts, business funding, marketing, and economics. The program will be strengthened through the resources of ECC’s Small Business Center.

Students should register for fall classes by August 16. Classes start August 17.

For more information on Welding, Entrepreneurship, or other programs at Edgecombe Community College, please contact admissions@edgecombe.edu or 823-5166, ext. 255.