(MARSHALL, Texas) – Texas State Technical College’s Marshall campus hosted the annual Texas High School Welding Series (TXHSWS) regional welding competition on Friday, Oct. 4. A total of 181 high school students signed up to compete, nearly doubling last year’s entries.
Jim Baxter, the TXHSWS state/regional event coordinator and a TSTC graduate, said the organization’s goal is to bridge the gap between industry and education.
“We’re trying to inspire young adults to take a career in welding,” Baxter said. “It’s a very beneficial role.”
Among the companies that were represented at the competition was electricity provider Vistra Corp. Amber Spanke, a senior recruiter on the company’s diversity, equity and inclusion team, said welding is important to its mining roles.
“We really want to facilitate a lot of jobs that people don’t necessarily have to have that four-year degree for,” Spanke said. “There’s a lot of opportunity in trades, even in energy, and that’s something that’s really important that we get the word out and let the people know. When companies are doing layoffs, they’re not letting go of the people that are literally keeping the lights on.”
The students competed in one of four welding levels and were assessed using a pass/fail system. In accordance with American Welding Society guidelines, students who passed received certification through the TXHSWS and became eligible to participate in the state competition in May 2025.
TSTC hosted 16 Texas high schools for the competition. Willie Morgan, a welding instructor at Pittsburg High School, brought eight students to compete, one of whom secured third place in the level-three welding category.
“For us, (the competition is) a huge motivational tool to use in the classroom,” Morgan said. “I encourage my students to come to TSTC.”
Lufkin High School student Jessie Lopez has been welding for a year and a half. It was his first time at TSTC, and he was especially interested in the new additions to the TXHSWS competition.
“I really like how they have all of these different categories set up,” Lopez said. “With the underwater welding, I like that we can get firsthand (experience) on how that feels. I like the virtual reality they have too.”
Applications for TSTC’s spring semester are being accepted. Spring registration begins Oct. 28. For more information, go to tstc.edu.
