East Peoria, IL. – Just under 100 high school students from Illinois, Eastern Iowa, and Indiana received scholarships for their welding skills at the annual Midwest Technical Institute and Delta Technical College Regional High School Welding Competition held Saturday, April 27, 2019 at MTI’s East Peoria, IL campus.
The MTI and DTC Regional HS Welding Competition is an invite-only competition established in 2007 for motivated high school students who want to prove that they have what it takes to be a welder. All participants in the regional welding competition received a $500 MTI Scholarship and had the opportunity to win up to $10,000 in additional scholarships. Each participant completed a timed welding project that was judged before a panel of welding experts.
A total of 90 participants competed in the Illinois region of the competition hosted at MTI’s East Peoria campus. In the senior division, first place was awarded to Evan Young of Livingston Area Career Center, who won a $10,000 MTI scholarship. Finishing in second place was Christopher Heuvelmann of Burlington Community High School in Iowa, who was awarded a $5,000 MTI scholarship. Savannah Davis of OKAW Area Vocational Center finished in third place, winning a $2,500 MTI scholarship.
In the junior division, first place was awarded to Brady Barker of Capital Area Career Center who won a $2,000 MTI scholarship. Will Martin of Central DeWitt High School in Iowa finished second in the junior division and was awarded a $1,000 MTI scholarship.
Director of High School Admissions, Louie Schonauer, shared his takeaways from this year’s competition:
“This competition is truly all about giving high schoolers a platform to showcase their welding skills and have fun doing something they truly enjoy. We also want to provide them an opportunity to pursue welding as a career path. We want to thank the participants’ families, as well as many of their high school welding instructors, who showed their support throughout the competition, and were a huge part of helping make sure these high school students were able to compete. At MTI, we know welding training can change lives, and we were thrilled to see so many participants excited about the opportunity to pursue welding as a career.”
Participants had the opportunity to enroll in one of MTI’s Welding Programs. MTI’s welding programs provide skills and hands-on training geared to meet the tough demands of today’s employers. The objective is for our students to gain entry-level employment across the country in the manufacturing, construction and maintenance fields. The MTI certifications we issue our graduates maximize employability potential in the welding industry.
For interview requests and other media inquiries, contact Louie Schonauer at 309-566-9580
Midwest High School Students Awarded Scholarships for Welding Skills in Regional Competition hosted by Midwest Technical Institute from Midwest Technical Institute & Delta Technical College
