Photo Provided Waylon Hayes, a senior in the welding program at Jefferson County Joint Vocational School, will be competing in the Project MFG Welding League Championship, to take place in Big Rapids, Mich. in June. He will be among 24 contestants seeking to win a $10,000 cash prize.

BLOOMIMGDALE — Jefferson County Joint Vocational School senior Waylon Hayes will put his skills on display after qualifying for the Project MFG National Welding League Championship in June.

Hayes, the son of Scooter and Heather Hayes of Wintersville and a senior at Steubenville High School, was among 24 students from across the country selected to compete at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Mich., on June 5-6.

According to its website, the NWL is a welding-focused competition comprised of two qualifying rounds at students’ home schools. More than 350 students took part at the onset, and after two rounds the top-performing participants were invited to attend the national championship. Hayes is only among two-dozen contestants spanning from New Hampshire to California and is also eligible to win a cash prize.

The first round began in October when Hayes received an NWL kit to complete a fabricating project. He was to build a scale model replica of an Army tank and then photograph and submit his creation for judging on an online platform.

Hayes first welded the tracks and base of the tank and photos were submitted for judging in November. Another kit was provided for the second round and required methods such as multi-pass welds and fill-and-cover passes to build the gun and turret using various materials. More photos were taken and submitted for judging and Hayes was notified of his selection in April, which also marks a first for the JVS.

“They gave us two months to do it and there were different rounds,” Hayes said. “I’m very excited. It was an opportunity to gain knowledge and see where I could take it. I’ve done other competitions but never have gone to the nationals.”

Meanwhile, the top welding student at the conclusion is eligible to win the $10,000 top prize and the national event will be filmed for the reality series, “Clash of Trades — Welding Edition.”

He was a competitor at the Ohio SkillsUSA event this year and said he plans to continue his career in the field after graduation. He currently works at ARM USA, Inc. in Wintersville and may eventually apply to work with a local union.

“I wanted to do something, and it seemed like I could learn a lot with welding and take it to a range of different places,” Hayes added, saying he’s gained a great education at the JVS. “I think the JVS has been extremely helpful and has prepared me with the things we do in class.”

Welding instructor Todd Parker said he was mostly hands-off throughout the process, acting as a coordinator between Project MFG and the students.

“This is the second year (for the challenge) and we were invited to participate,” Parker said. “They compete against other high school and even college students in some circumstances.”

He said he was excited for the opportunity available to Hayes, calling him a dedicated student.

“Somebody like him makes it easy for me to teach because he’s so interested,” Parker commented. “When the student is hungry to learn, it makes getting to work so much better. I’m 100 percent proud of him.”