Industrial Arts Workshop Program named ‘Champion in Action’ by Trib, Citizens

By his own admission, 16-year-old Josiah Hartly was having a hard time making his way through grade school in Brentwood.

Hartly said he was suffering from attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder at age 13, and deep down he knew that being in an ordinary class room was not for him.

“I‘m not a very classroom-oriented kid. When you’re a kid with a strong learning deficit, it’s really stressful because you feel like you’re letting your (family) down, your teachers down and yourself down, because you’re not learning to the best of your ability. In reality, it isn’t something that’s meant for you, and you’ve got to find that thing that you really enjoy doing,” he said.

“I always knew that I wanted to go into some type of a manual labor job. I was in a discovery stage. You always have this curiosity, this drive that makes you want to learn a new skill like welding, for example, or any industrial trade, for that matter. I just wanted to find what really fit me, what I like to do.”

Hartly couldn’t see himself working at a desk job later in life and knew he wanted to be paid to create things with his hands. He wanted to become a skilled welder. But where could he learn to do that?

He ended up finding just the place.

In the summer of 2021, Hartly enrolled in the Industrial Arts Workshop’s first free Summer Welding Bootcamp for teenagers. It runs six hours a day, three days a week for 10 weeks, for 10 to 14 students who produce artwork, learn welding skills and develop 21st-century workforce skills.

Industrial Arts Workshop is a nonprofit organization that provides opportunities that advance the understanding and process of sculpture making artists and their work. Students are paid a stipend for their participation in the development of projects from conception to completion.

On Wednesday, Industrial Arts Workshop held a celebration at its expansive headquarters in Hazelwood after being named a 2023 Champion in Action in the category of Youth Summer Workforce Programming. The award, announced jointly by Trib Total Media and Citizens Bank, includes $35,000 in unrestricted funding and promotional support in recognition of the organization’s work.

“To be recognized as a valuable part of the community is beyond a cash value. To be recognized for a service that we provide, validating our work, is enormous,” Industrial Arts Workshop executive director Tim Kaulen said. “As an arts organization, receiving financial support allows us to stabilize the operational cost in staff and upkeeping the building. To have this come unexpectedly, this gift in terms of youth programming and arts programming is a substantial boost to our operational support.“

In addition to youth programming, Industrial Arts Workshop is piloting specialized work force training programs for adults.

“Trib Total Media is proud to join Citizens in honoring the Industrial Arts Workshop,” Jennifer Bertetto, Trib Total Media president and CEO, said. “Their unique approach to youth programming and workforce development provides an arts-driven experience that also exposes students to potential careers in welding, fabrication and other technical fields.”

Mark Rendulic, Citizens Western Pennsylvania Region president, said he loves the idea of a program that combines support for youth, job development and the arts.

“I’m really a strong believer that not every kid necessarily should go to college,” Rendulic said. “I’m not talking down college, but we need talented people, welders, who can do the work. This (program) is a great example. Youth is very high on our agenda. And then if you say there’s also an arts element, you’re a genius from a funding perspective because there are so many of us that want to fund those particular things.”

Josiah Hartly has gone from being a student to a paid Industrial Arts Workshop staff member who teaches others. He particularly is proud of the work he’s produced, including a 15-foot cast metal sunflower sculpture for the city of Monessen that was begun two years ago.

“It was definitely a new experience, and I had a lot of fun with it,” he said.

Hartly is a home-schooled high school student in Brentwood and a student at Westmoreland County Community College and Trade Center. In two years, he will graduate with a high school diploma as well as an associate degree in welding. Meanwhile, he’s built his own home welding shop.

“People that know me know that I’m always looking for new opportunities and hungry for challenging myself,” Hartly said. “I’m always figuring out, ‘what’s a way that I can build this.’”