Clear Lake High School senior Emma Pingel uses an acetylene torch to weld steel plates together in her industrial-tech class, Dec. 1, 2021, in Clear Lake, Iowa. Pingel is taking her first industrial class this semester and is gaining skills in welding. She added that she jumped in without any prior knowledge, wanting basic understanding of how to weld for future use. (LISA GROUETTE – Globe Gazette/AP)
