Mark Simmons is the Director of Industrial Maintenance and Welding at Clarendon College. Prior to joining Clarendon College, Simmons taught welding at Frank Phillips College for ten years and worked in the welding industry for many years.
Simmons began teaching welding at Clarendon College in the summer of 2022. The program teaches students the fundamentals of welding, the standards of industrial welding, as well as how to meet those standards.
“This program is for students who want their education to be focused on a skilled trade,” Simmons said.
In addition to the welding program, Simmons is innovating the industrial maintenance program. The program will eventually be renamed to Mechanical/ Electrical Engineering and will have a number of on-site simulations that students can work on ranging from wind turbine to mechanical drive system simulators. Careers that involve these skill sets are heavily in demand in the panhandle area thanks to the many industrial manufacturing businesses.
When it comes to these programs, Simmons mentioned the importance of in person learning.
“Welding and mechanical/electrical engineering is geared for hands-on learning,” Simmons said. “When demonstrating welding techniques or correcting students, it’s difficult to correct immediately online. While we do have virtual simulators that students can test on, it is not the same as these on-site simulators. Having an instructor standing over and watching students in the classroom is vital.”
Though the program is not currently available, Simmons hopes to get mechanical/electrical engineering running for the future school year.
For more information about the welding program, contact Mark Simmons at (806) 874-4847 ext. 196.
