Mr. Woody's Underwater Welding Class
Big Spring High School has a long history full of people and events to be proud of. As with a lot of high schools
BSHS offers a welding course, but not many offer underwater welding.
BSISD Welding Instructor Dennis Woody said he had been wanting to add the specialized course to the curriculum for a long time having graduated from an underwater welding school himself.
While welding is a common class in high schools and colleges, not many in West Texas offer underwater welding, so
Mr. Woody had an idea.
“One day I asked Mr. Ritchey if we could do it,” explained Woody and continued, “... and he said, 'Go for it.'”
Although he was working with a limited budget, Woody managed to get several area organizations involved and, as the old saying goes, “Where there's a will there's a way.”
With donations of money and supplies from S and M Energy, Wolf Berry Tank Manufacturing and Big Rig Tubing-an 8 foot tall, 8 feet in diameter tank that holds 3,830 gallons was built by Big Spring ISD welding students and now sits, “... dead center of the shop floor.”
Underwater welding is a part of the welding class, but isn't for everyone as Woody explained, “Some of the students that helped build it would not get in it after it was built.”
As to why Woody proposed the class, “I want these kids to know that
they don't have to be poor.”
With the added skill of underwater diving, the high demand career of welding can be a lucrative field for anyone. “... I tell these kids that it doesn't matter how old you are, what color you are or whether you are male or female, there is a high demand for welders everywhere.”
According to Google, the average income for welding alone ranges regionally from $46,000 to more than $60,000 per year. In the United States, the average hourly wage for underwater welders is $21.56. The average annual wage is around $54,750. The top 90 percent of underwater welders can
make around $93,910 or more.
The basics of welding are taught before a student can enter the tank. Grades and conduct factor in as well.
Woody is in the process of getting the American Welding Society to get a certification for the students that the TEA will recognize.
Learning to weld and building the tank is a practice that may serve them well in their future careers. Underwater welding is used in the oil and gas industry and is essential for the construction, maintenance, and repair of offshore oil and gas platforms. It's also used in shipbuilding and repair, bridge and dam maintenance, salvage, and underwater construction.
Woody said he is hoping that some of his students will attend Oceancorp, the underwater welding school in Houston the he himself attended.
Several students worked on the project and helped build the tank and while only a few of his students are willing to take the plunge, (the first two students to weld underwater at BSHS were Juelz Jones and Andrew Garica), he is proud of their accomplishments.
“I am very proud of my students and I just want them to know there's lots of opportunities for them out there.”