Southwestern Community College's (SWCC's) automotive programs were recently awarded a $3,945 grant from the Iowa Automobile Dealers Association (IADA) Foundation for Education to purchase three weld stations to be utilized in the college's automotive programs.

According to Jeff Magneson, SWCC auto collision repair/refinish instructor, the college's welding courses have grown increasingly popular with automotive repair technology and auto collision repair/refinish students. Magneson said the college's automotive welding courses center on MIG steel, MIG pulse aluminum, squeeze type resistance spot welding, plasma cutting and oxyacetylene torch for heating, and emphasize PPE and safety as well as protecting the vehicle. The weld stations will allow students to complete I-CAR based welding of plug, stitch, overlap, open butt, and butt with backing joints in the flat, vertical, and overhead positions with the jigs. They will then destructive test their welds in the stations to check their weld integrity.

Since its inception, the IADA has awarded grants to community colleges to support automotive education in Iowa.

Learn more about SWCC's automotive programs at www.swcciowa.edu.

Pictured above: SWCC summer 2026 auto collision repair/refinish and automotive repair technology students with SWCC automotive instructors in front of the college's new weld stations.