HAMLET — Richmond Community College welding instructor Jason Felts took his welding students to Fayetteville Technical Community College to participate in a regional competition for SkillsUSA on March 10.
SkillsUSA is open to all high school and community college students. This competition gives students an opportunity to showcase their skills in many different categories. Some of the categories are welding, machining, HVAC, firefighting, drone technology, nursing, and many other various programs.
Felts had seven students who competed in welding: Weldon Walker, John Lunceford, Gregory Allen, Christopher “Cain” Hunsucker, Eric Greene, Louis Fernandez and Gabriel Harrington. They are Richmond Senior High School students who are dually enrolled at RichmondCC.
They used skills they have learned in the College welding program to complete four 12-inch-long fillet welds. The welds included a series of three vertical SMAW welds, a SMAW overhead fillet weld, a horizontal GMAW fillet weld, and horizontal SMAW fillet weld.
Hunsucker earned a fourth-place finish, while Eric Greene earned a fifth-place finish. Both students were also invited to compete at the state competition in Greensboro on April 18 and 20. Lunceford and Walker also competed at the state competition for the fabrication division.
RichmondCC’s welding program is open to juniors and seniors in high school. If a student is interested, they should see their high school counselor for an application. Registration for the fall semester at RichmondCC is underway, so now is the time to schedule fall classes. Call 910-410-1700 to learn more about the welding program.
