West Virginia Northern Community College student Sydney Doyle, left, and program director Brandy Killeen practice welding techniques in the Industry Technology Center in Wheeling.

WHEELING — Skilled trades open doors to some of the hottest jobs available for those who enjoy working with their hands and putting practical artistry to good use, and Brandy Killeen passing the torch that helps students put together the pieces needed to build solid careers.

Killeen, program director of Welding Technology at West Virginia Northern Community College, has seen the program take great strides in recent years.

“Our student population has definitely changed,” she said. “When I first started here, we had a lot of people changing career paths, and it was a lot of older people in the classes. Recently, we’ve started seeing a lot of younger students, and I think that has a lot to do with dual enrollment and early entrance classes. So that’s a huge opportunity for students to take advantage of. We’ve had multiple students be able to graduate from our program before they were even able to graduate high school.”

There have been more women, as well, and Killeen herself blazed a trail of sorts when the former WVNCC student was hired as its first female welding technology instructor.

“I started taking welding classes in high school,” the Wheeling Park High School alum noted. “I actually was here (at WVNCC) getting my associates degree. My goal was to become a certified welding inspector. So I wanted to get my associates degree to kind of use that towards my CWI experience, and I was here getting my two-year associates degree.”

Since she had prior learning credits, Killeen was able to earn her associate’s degree at Northern in just two semesters. When a job became available at WVNCC, she applied for it.

“I ended up getting it. I actually started as a lab technician here,” she said. “I was a lab technician briefly beforehand, and that’s when the teaching position opened up. So I just kind of rolled right into that.”

She’s now been in the program at WVNCC for a total of eight years, with seven at the head of the growing classes.

“I like teaching people practical skills that get them employment, get them a good income,” Killeen said. “I like to see them come out of here and make good money and have good careers for themselves.”

For each welding process, there is a structural class and a pipe class at WVNCC that covers it. Killeen oversees the classes with the help from welding instructor Bob Combs, along with welding instructional assistant Don Bosley.

“There are all different kinds of welding processes,” Killeen said. “There’s MIG welding, stick welding, TIG welding, flux cored and we cover all of those in the program — on plate and on pipe.”

Welding is literally everywhere in everyday items, structures, merchandise and more. It is used extensively in various industries, and different industries have their own individual standards.

“There are different governing codes for all of those areas,” Killeen explained. “There’s aerospace code, pipeline code, just basic structural welding code, there’s bridge code … there’s all kinds of different codes that cover different fields in the industry.”

As a certified welding inspector, Killeen can train and certify students with skills that meet all of those codes. But while anyone with the passion and drive to become a skilled welder can achieve their own goals, it is not for everyone.

“It is long hours and hard work,” Killeen said. “The most challenging aspect would probably be the physical part of it.”

And the rewards of the field go beyond financial security.

“You can make a good living wage for you and your family, and you’re building a product that you can be proud of, and that can be rewarding, as well,” Killeen said.

At WVNCC, the relatively new Industry Technology Center has given the Welding Technology program a home with room to grow. It opened in 2018 on Eoff Street just southeast of the B&O Building.

“We were very fortunate to get this nice new building with new machines, new equipment and more space,” Killeen said. “Opening this facility has definitely helped this program move forward. We can accept more students per class now. Since we have been over there, we’ve become an accredited test facility with AWS (American Welding Society), as well. So we can offer AWS certifications, which are nationally recognized, to the students.”

Today, the Welding Technology program at WVNCC typically has between 10 to 12 students per class. They offer a two-year degree, along with a one-year certification in applied science in oil and gas pipe welding.

Killeen has also had the opportunity to further her education and enhance her expertise in recent years, as well, serving on the board of directors with the American Welding Society for four years. There she was able to be involved with different committees on the national level – from code committees to scholarship review committees – which offer new opportunities to learn for both her, and in turn, her students.

In class, students learn how to do welds and do them the right way. They get invaluable practice ahead of time in a controlled setting.

“That way when you’re going to work on critical things, you have that experience and background,” Killeen said. “That can be very important. Bad welds can be dangerous.

“It’s an important field, because welding is everywhere. It touches just about everything. There are new processes popping up all of the time. Laser welding is something relatively new that’s coming around, and we actually just purchased a laser welder for our shop, so we’ll start introducing that into our curriculum, as well.”

For those interested in checking out the welding program at WVNCC, tours are available.

“It’s not always for everybody. So we’re always willing to let somebody suit up and give it a try to see if they like it first. If the environment captivates you, then it’s definitely for you,” Killeen said.

Despite the changing time, welding and other skills in the trades will always be a hot commodity in the job market.

“It’s a job that AI can’t take,” Killeen added.