{"id":7916,"date":"2021-12-03T10:49:37","date_gmt":"2021-12-03T15:49:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/?p=7916"},"modified":"2022-03-21T12:53:42","modified_gmt":"2022-03-21T16:53:42","slug":"randolph-high-senior-wins-welding-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/2021\/12\/03\/randolph-high-senior-wins-welding-competition\/","title":{"rendered":"Randolph High Senior Wins Welding Competition"},"content":{"rendered":"
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]This story was originally published on Philadelphia Tribune here: https:\/\/www.phillytrib.com\/the_learning_key\/randolph-high-senior-wins-welding-competition\/article_805c3b0f-2fea-5983-abb9-db3252511ead.html<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/4″][vc_single_image image=”7305″ img_size=”full”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”3\/4″][vc_column_text]When Randolph Technical High School senior Ahjhane Blackwell was named the winner of a recent welding competition, she was originally shocked by the news.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really couldn\u2019t believe that I won,\u201d Ahjhane said. \u201cThis was not only the first time I ever participated in a welding competition, but it was also the first time I actually had to read blueprints and put pieces together.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_column_text]\u201cI was just excited to be in the competition itself, but to actually win was just amazing,\u201d she added. \u201cIt was definitely the best day of my life.”<\/p>\n

Ahjhane, 17, won Project MFG\u2019s first maritime-focused student competition at the Philadelphia Shipyard training facility in the U.S. Navy\u2019s Pennsylvania Workforce Pipeline Project career discovery event.<\/p>\n

During the event, students had to race against the clock to weld a design by the Navy. The day concluded with an awards ceremony recognizing the top students in welding.<\/p>\n

In addition to Randolph, Benjamin Franklin High School, Jules Mastbaum High School, Swenson Arts and Technical High School and Thomas A. Edison High School.<\/p>\n

Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing, Bucks County Community College, Community College of Philadelphia, Delaware County Community College, Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology, Williamson College of Trades and Father Judge High School also participated in the event.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had two hours to finish our metal submarines and I think I finished under two hours,\u201d Ahjhane said. \u201cDuring the competition they had people walking around and watching what we were doing.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn addition to winning the competition itself, I also won a raffle,\u201d she added. \u201cThe prize for the raffle was $500.\u201d<\/p>\n

Randolph welding instructor David Poe said he was proud of what Ahjhane accomplished during the competition.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had a few students from Randolph participate in the competition,\u201d Poe said. \u201cEach team from each school had to pick one person to do the welding.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was on camera during the competition, so we could actually watch her while she was welding,\u201d he said. \u201cAhjhane did an amazing job.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe has such a good welding hand and she follows directions really well,\u201d he added. \u201cI knew she would be a perfect selection to represent the school with three guides.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ahjhane is among a group of 44 students that participates in Randolph\u2019s welding technology program.<\/p>\n

During the program, students are prepared to perfect both small and large scale welding techniques that are used in various forms of construction.<\/p>\n

Poe, who has been at the helm of the welding program for the last two years, teaches sophomores, juniors, and seniors.<\/p>\n

\u201cI teach three different types of welding, so that way if the students can\u2019t do one they can do another,\u201d Poe said. \u201cI want them to have options and the best way for me to make sure they have that is to teach them as much as I can about welding.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I\u2019m trying to do as their teacher is prepare them for a career,\u201d he added. \u201cI want them to have a good foundation, get the certifications that they need so that they can get the job that they want.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ahjhane praised Poe as her teacher and said she wouldn\u2019t have been able to accomplish what she did at the competition without him.<\/p>\n

\u201cMr. Poe is an amazing teacher,\u201d Ahjhane said. \u201cI\u2019ve learned so much from him in the short time that I had him as a teacher.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe believed in me from the beginning and he gave me the foundation and support to be in my first welding competition,\u201d she added. \u201cIt\u2019s because of him and the welding program at Randolph that I\u2019m thinking about a future in welding.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ahjhane Blackwell won Project MFG\u2019s first maritime-focused student competition at the Philadelphia Shipyard training facility in the U.S. Navy\u2019s Pennsylvania Workforce Pipeline Project career discovery event…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":88719,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36,37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7916","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cte-month-2022","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7916","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/88719"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7916"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7916\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7948,"href":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7916\/revisions\/7948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philasd.org\/cte\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}