Mercedes High Student Picks Up The Torch

Jamie Noriega is a 16-year-old junior who attends Mercedes High School and at such a young age is something of a trailblazer.

Jamie is helping to break stereotypes by picking up a welding torch as a dual credit student at South Texas College. Both her mother and primary instructor encourage Noriega to reach for aspirations that in previous generations were out of reach for women. She is among a handful of female students enrolled in STC’s welding program, but she’s undeterred by the numbers.

“My mom tells me, ‘So what if you’re a girl? You can do anything you set your mind to,” Noriega said in an STC news release. “Those words stay with me every time I pick up my welding torch.”

Eliseo Cantu, a welding lecturer at STC, is one of Noriega’s mentors at STC and sees in her a student who is motivated to succeed. Cantu says female welders “are capable of obtaining jobs anywhere from pipefitting to welders and fabricators.”

Motivation is the key, he said, and Noriega says she has been inspired by her STC instructor.

“I lost my passion for welding until I came to STC,” she said. “Instructors like Mr. Cantu really changed that for me. He always tells me to show the boys how it’s done and that pushes me to work harder and prove myself.”

Exciting Opportunties

The welding industry is a growing field with a strong demand that is being fed by large infrastructure projects and increasing needs in the manufacturing sector.

In the Rio Grande Valley, there are welding opportunities in manufacturing with trailers and equipment, marine and shipyard work at the Port of Brownsville, and construction projects at SpaceX’s Starbase at Boca Chica Beach. One industry estimate is that over 80,000 jobs need to be filled annually with a need for younger workers in a field experiencing many retirements.

A growing number of female welders is helping to fill those gaps. It is a male-dominated industry. There are, however, indications that more women are getting into the field. The percentage of women welders has grown from four percent in 2010 to about eight percent today. One report noted a 30-percent increase in female welders since 2016.

“Over the last couple years there has been more female students entering the welding program,” said Cantu, the welding lecturer at STC. “The opportunities are endless, but the motivation has to come from the students themselves.”

Noriega expressed excitement about seeking opportunities in the welding field, be it in the Valley or elsewhere.

“What really excites me about welding is that it can take you anywhere,” the Mercedes High student said. “I want to travel, see new places and work on different projects doing something I love.”

“The metal industry” that the welding field is part of is no longer the exclusive workforce domain of men. One major Midwest-based metals industry company – Nix Industrial - says on its website that “women welders, machinists and painters are breaking new ground, challenging norms, and reshaping the landscape of these professions.”

Young female welders like Jamie Noriega are at the forefront of that labor movement and are showing the boys how it’s done.

‍

- Ric Cavazos

‍