Clad in a baggy, dark green jumpsuit, a welding helmet placed securely on the head and heavy-duty gloves to protect the hands, a welder with tool in hand, is ready to take on the task at hand.
Beneath the rough exterior, one cannot tell that there is a beautiful woman with a radiant smile, long silky black hair, scented with the sweet aroma of fragrance concealed within.
Triple majoring in welding, auto-collision repair and painting and child development, Caryn Yokota, 27 has been at EC for 10 years.
“I was not sure what field I wanted to go into and I did not want to go to an expensive university,” Yokota said. “I decided to come here because it was cheaper and closer to home.”
Yokota was a junior in high school when she began taking classes at EC.
“It was somewhat difficult to be in high school and community college at the same time,” Yokota said. ” I still wanted to socialize with my peers but I knew that the decision was advantageous for me.”
Just as she was getting ready to graduate from the child development program, she took summer session off to take a body shop class at Fullerton Community College.
“The body shop class was the most enjoyable subject I had ever taken up to that point,” Yokota said. “It was from that course that I discovered I wanted to learn how to weld because they went hand in hand.”
In the fall of 2006, Yokota enrolled in the full time, eight unit, welding class.
“I fell in love with welding because it was so much fun,” Yokota said. “But it was frustrating at first because I had to learn how to do multiple things at once.”
Prior to discovering welding and auto-collision repair and technology, Yokota explored her talents in child development, art, fashion, and photography.
“After I learned the welding process, my instructors began admiring my work because I had the patience and eye to do it,” Yokota said. “Their words encouraged me to do more so I started taking more classes.”
The last four semesters, Yokota has not taken welding classes because she became a Supplemental Instruction coach in welding through the Women in Industry and Technology Program, a program for women in non-traditional fields.
“As an S.I. coach, I provide students with extra help in case they do not want to go to the instructor,” Yokota said. “We hold S.I. sessions, which are sessions of the class the person just had to answer questions or clarify any topic they did not understand.”
The S.I. coach is a paid position and due to the nature of the welding class, Yokota is available during class to help the students.
“When the semester starts, I get an attitude from some of the men because they don’t think that I will be able to help them,” Yokota said. “I’ll have to push them aside to show them my welds and demonstrate how I can help them. Afterwards, they really want my help.”
Yokota wants to pursue a career in teaching so that she may eventually come back to EC and teach welding.
“I would love to work at EC because I know everyone and it is a great place,” Yokota said. “I will always be in school whether I’m a student or a teacher, you can never learn enough.”
