April is National Welding Month
A Guilderland teenager is “grinding away” at Capital Region BOCES in order create a bright future.
Welding and Metal Fabrication senior Angelo Castro practiced his skills this week as he prepared for certification exams in one of the Career and Technical Education Center – Albany Campus’ welding labs.
“I am going right into the workforce after graduation. I feel I am very well prepared because of Capital Region BOCES. I have learned the skills I will need to get started in life,” said Castro.
April is national Welding Month, a time to recognize and reflect on the impact welding has on the daily life of everyone who works, drives, or performs routine tasks made possible through welding.
Every day in thousands of manufacturing operations like Package One in Schenectady, shipyards, automotive assembly plants and construction sites, skilled welding professionals are working to build the structures and products on which the American economy depends.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of those welders got their start right in Capital Region BOCES’ high school and adult education programs.
Castro is one of about 75 students enrolled in the Welding and Metal Fabrication program this school year at Capital Region BOCES.
The program prepares approximately students with the skills they need to either directly enter the workforce or expand their skills in a college or trade school. During the two-year program that is taught in two state-of-the-art labs, students learn American Welding Society standards and earn certifications that prepare them for a career in the welding industry.
For more information on the Welding and Metal Fabrication program, go to https://www.capitalregionboces.org/career-technical-education/courses-programs/welding-metal-fabrication/.