Learning Crucial Career-Based Skills Prepares Students
Launch the media gallery 1 player - media #1Mr. Rodriguez's AM Welding class
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Launch the media gallery 1 player - media #3Coming to IVVC has been one of the most interesting experiences of my senior year. Socializing, meeting new people, and learning career-based skills all are beneficial to somebody in some type of way.
In Mr. Rodriguez's class, I have met some pretty incredible people whether they want to be in the industry or just want to try something different. Seeing the way everybody was here for a different reason made it easy to love this class. You don’t need to know what you're doing after high school to learn about a career like this. Welding can be both rewarding and disheartening at the same time.
Being the only girl in AM, I thought that it would’ve been a lot harder for me to get comfortable, but Mr. Rodriguez made that easy. He taught the class simple things at first like grinding and what the disks are used for. We never had to ask a question because Mr. Rodriguez already told us everything there was to know. Learning from a teacher who thoroughly explains concepts all the way through makes things so much easier.
Mr. Rodriguez taught us GMAW, GTAW, SMAW, and plenty more things like using the drill press and bandsaw. Not to mention we learned all positions, including flat (1F), horizontal (2F), vertical (3F), and overhead (4F) in almost every type of welding we learn. With a little experience already, some of this was a review to me.
One of the most interesting things I learned was reading blueprints. This is one of the most crucial skills you need before going into the field. Reading blueprints can be hard at times, but we went through the symbols, signs, and real blueprints 2-3 times a week. Mr. Rodriguez is making sure we seniors are prepared for anything when we graduate, and I can’t thank him enough for that.