Outside of the Classroom: OHS Senior Josh Weber 

For OHS Senior Josh Weber, waking up at 4:30 in the morning every day of the week is no stranger to him. Before he goes to school, he works as a steamfitter until noon.

Weber works at a company called 1901 in Madison as a Youth Apprentice through the school to career program here at Oregon.

“It’s always something new, with different projects everyday. I don’t think I work on the same thing 2 days in a row,” Weber told me, “it is metal working which I like.”

Weber became interested in this job through family friends who were convincing him to check out the company. He had always been interested in metal working, so it made sense to him. He did a tour and thought it was pretty cool and a good fit for him.

A typical shift for Weber consists of getting to 1901 early and waiting for the clock to hit 6 am so he can go in and work. As soon as the clock hits, he is ready to start the day. The labor he performs ranges from jobs that don’t need to be finished right away to helping his co-workers with work.

“It is different every single day. The work I do before my 30 minute break and the work I do after it are completely different,” says Weber. 

Weber told me his favorite part of his job is the people. He is the youngest at work, with the majority of his co-workers being old enough to be his father. With his co-workers, he likes how he can joke around with them and not have to be overly professional. 

While he does enjoy being with his co-workers, Weber mentioned that being at work and being at school are completely different from each other.

 “The transition from work to school is very different,” says Weber. “I know pretty much nothing at work, to being top of the class at school.”

Weber is not able to point out to his co-workers welding mistakes without getting flack for it. In contrast, at school, he can give his two cents to his classmates and they will take into account what he is saying.

“At work I don’t need to be too professional with my language. We joke around with each other,” he says.

Weber plans on making a career with this company, for at least 5 years until his apprenticeship is complete. It’s important for him to learn about the new technology that is applied in his job.

As soon as he graduates Oregon High School, his boss wants to get him into apprenticeship school as soon as possible. Weber will be a full time steamfitter with his career already set in stone.