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Lorain County Community College opens welding center

Lorain County Community College (LCCC), Elyria, Ohio, has opened a new welding lab and classrooms. The center, made possible with a $4.9 million grant from the National Science Foundation, enhances the school's on-campus arm of the National Center for Welding Education and Training (Weld-Ed).

"The need for welders has never been greater," said President Roy Church." This enables us to stay ahead of the curve by offering innovative training and recruitment."

Part of a joint venture among more than 40 businesses and 10 colleges, as well as the American Welding Society and National Science Foundation, the Weld-Ed center is doubling in size to 6,000 sq. ft. and will offer features such as interactive video distance learning classrooms.

The center's current enrollment of 25 will grow as the larger lab will offer more day and evening classes to accommodate working students.

"In today's economy, we're seeing a lot of welders delaying retirement, but once things start to turn around, we're going to see a lot of retirements, which will open up a lot of jobs," said Kelly Zelesnik, dean of the college's Engineering Technologies division. "There's going to be a lot of people needed to shore up the industry."