New and Enthusiastic Approach in Teaching Welding
Aaron Dittmar is a welding instructor at the Wharton County Junior College. He confessed that he always loved working with metal but he didn’t saw himself as someone who will teach the skills to students. He said he was not prepared to be in the spotlight.
Dittmar could easily find work with a machine shop or a manufacturing company but he chose to be an instructor instead. After he graduated from Wharton High School in 2002, he used the skills he learned to work as a maintenance and fabrication welder.
Then six years later he earned an associate’s degree and a certificate in welding technology from Wharton County Junior College. During that time he wasn’t expecting a door opening on a new career path. He was asked by WCJC to go back and teach.
In 2008, Dittmar started as a part-time welding instructor in WCJC. He then became full-time and in 2013, he took the position of Program Director for Welding Technology. He said that he was blessed with the talent and ability and wants to show others how to do welding the right way.
Dittmar is a certified welder in various skills and techniques. He teaches Shielded Metal Arc Welding or SMAW, Gas Metal Arc Welding or GMAW, Gas Tungsten Arc Welding or GTAW, and Flux Core Arc Welding or FCAW.
WCJC’s welding program has been made to give a solid foundation for people who want to improve their skills and get a job in manufacturing, fabrication or construction. People who have completed the program get a certificate in welding technology.
Most of the graduates of the program find work in plate and pipe jobs. The average salary is $35,000 to $46,000. Dittmar said that his goal to get them functional. He doesn’t just teach welding skills. He also wants to improve the work ethic of young people. During the short period of time, he hopes to make a positive difference among his students.
