North Dakota Welds (NDWelds) Program: Advancing Welding Technician Skills for Students and Training for Educators

北达科他州立科学学院（NDSCS）将实施NDwelds计划，其目标是提高中学生、两年制大学生、中学教师和两年制大学教职员工的焊接技术技能。通过这个ATE项目，NDSCS将增加拥有基本和先进技能的培训和认证焊工的数量，以满足该地区和国家的劳动力需求。该项目结合了由ATE资助的国家焊接教育和培训卓越区域中心（Weld-Ed）开发的培训模块，并以NDSCS的北达科他州先进制造技能培训计划（NDAMSTI）的成功为基础，该计划由美国劳工部的贸易调整援助社区学院和职业培训计划资助。该项目将提高代表性不足群体（女性和少数民族）的学生对焊接科学、技术、工程和数学（STEM）职业机会的认识。NDwelds将通过填补关键的就业培训需求，对区域经济环境产生重大影响。该项目通过建立从中等职业和技术教育课程到高等焊接课程的学生管道，回应了商业和行业对焊工的需求。更具体地说，该项目将通过以下五个目标来完成：(1)通过与北达科他州中学的职业和技术教育课程相结合，并采用美国焊接协会（AWS）通过国家技能标准教育（SENSE）计划的优秀学校，在NDSCS开发焊接课程；(2)针对女性和少数民族学生开展外展活动，以增加中等职业和技术教育课程的入学率；(3)通过专业发展活动招聘和培训职业和技术教育教师；(4)通过NDSCS成为AWS认可的测试机构，促进使用国家标准对焊工进行认证和测试；(5)开发网格课程，为NDSCS的焊接和制造学生建立新的高级技能学位课程，同时增加NDSCS毕业生参加明尼苏达州立大学摩尔黑德分校和山谷城市州立大学2加2项目的人数。这些课程开发的累积努力，有针对性的扩展，使学生群体多样化，教师专业发展，以及为焊接和制造建立可持续的途径，有可能改变北达科他州焊接技术人员教育的区域和州景观。

North Dakota State College of Science (NDSCS) will implement the NDwelds Program with the goal of enhancing welding technician skills for secondary school students, two-year college students, secondary school teachers, and two-year college faculty members. Through this ATE project, NDSCS will increase the number of trained and certified welders possessing essential and advanced skills to meet the workforce needs of the region and state. This project incorporates training modules developed through the ATE funded Regional Center for the National Center of Excellence in Welding Education and Training (Weld-Ed) and builds upon the success of NDSCS's North Dakota Advanced Manufacturing Skills Training Initiative (NDAMSTI) funded through the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training program of the U. S. Department of Labor. The project will increase awareness among students from under-represented groups (females and minorities) of the opportunity of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) careers in welding. NDwelds will significantly impact the regional economic environment by filling a critical employment training need. This project responds to business and industry needs for welders by building the pipeline of students from secondary career and technical education programs to post-secondary welding programs.More specifically, the project will be accomplished through the following five goals: (1) Develop a welding curriculum at NDSCS by alignment with the curriculum delivered in career and technical education courses in secondary schools across North Dakota and the adoption of the American Welding Society's (AWS) Schools Excelling through National Skill Standards Education (SENSE) program, (2) Conduct outreach activities targeting female and minority students to increase enrollments in secondary career and technical education courses, (3) Recruit and train career and technical education instructors through professional development activities, (4) Facilitate the certification and testing of welders using national standards by NDSCS becoming an AWS Accredited Test Facility, and (5) Develop latticed curricula to establish new degree tracks in advanced skills for welding and manufacturing students at NDSCS while increasing the number of NDSCS graduates that participate in 2 plus 2 programs with Minnesota State University-Moorhead and Valley City State University. These cumulative efforts of curriculum development, targeted outreach to diversify the student body, faculty professional development, and building sustainable pathways for welding and manufacturing have the potential to transform the regional and state landscape of welding technician education in North Dakota.