Rachel Pike has some advice for those unsure of their career path.
“I would just really encourage anybody (who) doesn’t know what they’re going to do, either after college or after high school, to check out the trades,” she said.
She’s not just saying that because she is the lead weld instructor for Virginia Peninsula Community College’s Workforce Development programs. She’s saying that because she was in that position twice and has found something she loves.
Pike and her family moved from Pennsylvania to York County when she was around 6 years old. She graduated from Tabb High School in 2015 and headed off to Virginia Commonwealth University.
“I went to art school, which I do not regret,” she said. “But I didn’t think about the financial situation. That was not a thought in my mind because I’ve been blessed enough that my parents had a college fund for me.”
Her father, a welding engineer at Newport News Shipbuilding, suggested she try welding. It was an idea that came unexpectedly. Pike had taken welding classes at VCU and even welded a little at VPCC when it was known by its former name.
“The first time I ever welded was here at Thomas Nelson,” she said, adding she paid a nominal fee to use the welding bays at the Peninsula Workforce Development Center for a few hours when she was in high school.
She enjoyed it because it was another form of art.
“I just fell into it from there,” she said.
Two months after graduating with an art degree from VCU a semester early, in December 2018, she was working as a welder at the shipyard.
She started in the submarine shop and was there for five years. Her first 2 ½ years were spent working on small components. After becoming certified in ultrasonic testing, which is a higher standard, she was moved to the nuclear system.
However, during that time, she suffered a back injury and transitioned into an engineering technician role with the welding engineering department.
“That’s coincidentally where my dad works as well,” she said, noting he wasn’t her supervisor. “It was nice working with my dad when I was able to see him.”
That lasted about a year before she was furloughed. Again, she didn’t know what she was going to do next. She thought about working on a cruise line until she heard about the instructor position at VPCC.
“Fortunately, this job came up so I jumped on it, and I really enjoy it now,” she said. “I really feel strongly about training the next generation of welders.”
During her welding career, she found there was a need for more training.
“They gave me just enough information to weld what they needed me to weld,” she said. “I just felt like there was a lack in the information that was given to myself, to my peers.”:
Bobby Perkins, the College’s director of Manufacturing, Skilled Trades and Transportation, said she’s a great addition to his team.
“She has come in and done a really great job,” he said.
One of his responsibilities is to manage all the welding programs, including interacting with every aspect of each program.
“She’s just been here four months and she’s taken all of that off my hands,” he said. “I have very little interaction with the day-to-day.”
They meet regularly to keep him up to speed, but it’s a relief for Perkins that Pike is at the College.
“She’s done a phenomenal job so far,” he said. “The team has embraced her as their leader.”
When she was growing up, Pike didn’t have any strong convictions about a profession. She entertained the thought of being an art teacher like her mother. However, she saw the toll it took on her and didn’t want that. By the way, her mother now works in planning at the Shipyard.
“I ended up coming back to (teaching) in a way, just not teaching art,” she said.
She does miss welding, especially the satisfaction derived at the end of the day from a job well done, and its simplicity.
“It’s very open and shut. You go in, you weld for eight hours and you leave,” she said. “You don’t have to (bring your work home).”
Now, her satisfaction comes from her students.
“It’s really nice seeing students when they get it when I’m explaining things,” she said. “It’s just really satisfying when you see it click in their brain and you see them have that win for themselves. That’s something I really like.”
She doesn’t miss the risks inherent in welding. She noted her back injury.
“Unfortunately, that’s not something that’s going to go away,” she said. “That’s probably going to become a chronic issue for me, probably worse as I get older.”
She wants to continue in this role for a while, but has entertained thoughts of moving up in Workforce Development at the College, whatever role that may be.
“It’s mostly going to be informed by pay, and then how my body feels,” she said.
Thinking about pay is what got her into her current position in the first place.
“I really, really love it,” she said of welding. “If that seems like something that’s interesting to somebody (who’s) just out there looking to start something with their life, then I would recommend they check it out.”