Students become mentors at no-cost youth welding program | The Homepage

• 

• 

Photo 1: Skyy Mitchell (on left) and Danni Davenport hold the small model or “mockette” they created of the large sculpture that will adorn Bethel Park Elementary School’s new campus. Photo by Ziggy Edwards. Photo 2: Summer Welding Boot Camp students Rasheed Carr (on left) and Veronica Hartlage work on the nest part of the sculpture that will adorn Bethel Park Elementary School’s new campus. Photo by Ziggy Edwards

By Ziggy Edwards

During fabrication week at Industrial Arts Workshop’s sixth Summer Welding Boot Camp in Hazelwood, the studio at 5434 Herbert Way buzzed and sparked with welding machines in action. Some students worked in booths, while others paired up behind red safety screens.

After weeks of planning and training, they were building this year’s final project: a human-sized bird commissioned by Bethel Park Elementary School.

Ideas take flight

The school wanted a sculpture for the courtyard of their new building. They invited Industrial Arts Workshop to design and create one. Summer Welding Bootcamp students worked with the Bethel Park school and its students to come up with ideas for a meaningful sculpture, according to the organization’s press release.

“We looked at art from students at the school and visited the site,” explained Paloma Pelfrey, student helper and social media producer, during an Aug. 18 tour of the workshop. “We talked about what’s important to them. ... We talked about things like making it high off the ground so no one can climb on it, making sure it’s not too scary.”

Each welding student drew their idea for the sculpture, and the group voted on them. Different groups tested their welding skills as they worked on different parts.

The final design is of a bird standing in a nest with its wings outstretched.

In the final three weeks of the free 10-week program, the group was fabricating full-scale parts. This fall, returning students and after-school students will work on assembling the sculpture and installing it in Bethel Park.

Mentorship on many levels

When the project is done, it’s not unusual for students to stay.

Ms. Pelfrey started at Industrial Arts Workshop as a student in 2022 and stayed as a student helper, taking on other responsibilities over time. She wrote and distributed the press release announcing this year’s project.

“I’m never just here to teach, I’m here to learn,” she said. She has benefited from “mentorship on many different levels,” learning grant writing, social media skills and recruitment, as well as shadowing the nonprofit’s photographer, Murphy Moschetta.

Urban Pathways senior Trace Brown participated in Weld Scholars, an in-school program of Industrial Arts Workshop, before joining the summer program. He looks forward to following in the footsteps of other students who have gone on to teach at Industrial Arts Workshop.

“I want to be an instructor here. You get to learn every day even if you’re working here,” he said.

The support of previous students has worked for Skyy Mitchell. She first learned about Industrial Arts Workshop through the Neighborhood Learning Alliance, one of the nonprofit’s programs.

“My mentors are kind of like my peers so it’s a lot more comfortable,” the visual arts major at CAPA said, adding that the course provided her with welding gear and connected her with a new best friend, Danni Davenport. “It’s inclusive; there’s no shame. They want you to succeed,” she said.

Mx. Davenport, a 10th grader at Spectrum Charter School, said they love the creative parts of the program. They were surprised to find that the loud noises in the studio did not bother them as much as they had feared.

“It’s very welcoming,” Mx. Davenport said, adding that the program helped them reach their goals by holding them accountable.

Hazelwood resident, high school graduate and Summer Welding Boot Camp student Rasheed Carr will be returning to the studio this school year to mentor new students through KEYS AmeriCorps, said Industrial Arts Workshop Executive Director Tim Kaulen.

Mr. Carr said his favorite thing about the program is “versatility.”

“I get to do multiple things, not just one activity,” he explained. “There’s freedom here, and you get to learn.”

Ziggy Edwards is a citizen journalist who lives in Four Mile Run and proofreads every issue of The Homepage.