Kurt Billsten, Practical Welding Today’s PWTeacher of the Year

Transforming a Welding Program from Zero to Hero

From “Practical Welding Today”…

Seventeen years ago, Harper had no welding program to speak of. Today it’s more than 500 students strong with an array of programs, including basic welding, maintenance welding, pipe welding, CNC machining, and most recently metal fabricating, thanks to the dedication of Kurt Billsten.

Kurt’s route to teaching can be traced back to a pivotal moment when the company Kurt worked for switched from steel chutes to aluminum chutes. He realized that no one knew how to fix them when they would crack or break. So Kurt decided to learn how to do it himself. Little did he know that would be the start of something much bigger than himself.

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