(ABILENE, Texas) – More than 1,000 high school welders will converge in Abilene from May 6-8 for the 2026 Texas High School Welding Series state championships.
The event will be hosted at Texas State Technical College’s Industrial Technology Center and the Abilene Independent School District’s Leadership and Innovation in Future Technologies (LIFT) Center. Both facilities are on Quantum Loop in Abilene.
“Hosting the statewide championship isn’t just an honor; it’s a statement,” said Greg Nicholas, program team lead for TSTC’s Welding program in Abilene. “It transforms our campus into the epicenter of craftsmanship, proving that we aren’t just teaching a trade — we are training the talent that will literally build the future of our state.”
The competition begins Wednesday, May 6, with a “build-off” featuring teams of four. Each team will receive identical plans to construct a fire stove, with judging based on craftsmanship, process, project completion, showmanship and safety.
Participating schools include Bellville, Calhoun, Canyon, Coahoma, Early, Forsan, Giddings, Hart, Huntsville, Lampasas, Longview, Lufkin, Navasota, Newton, Pearland, Perryton, Rains, Roswell (New Mexico), Royal, Saint Teresa, and Waller. These teams qualified during regional events held across the state, including several TSTC campuses.
While the team build-off concludes Thursday, May 7, several individual competitions will run throughout the three-day event across four skill levels. The event culminates in the Best of the Best Championship on Friday, May 8. This final round features the top 20 performers from each level who passed their initial Day 1 testing.
“For these competitors, the shop floor is their stadium,” Nicholas said. “By hosting this statewide, we are giving them the ‘home-field advantage’ of a world-class facility and the unbeatable energy of a community that actually wants to see them succeed.”
In addition to the core competitions, students will participate in industry tours, a cutting contest and underwater welding demonstrations.
The event will conclude with an awards presentation at 3 p.m. Friday, May 8.
For more information about the event, visit https://sites.google.com/view/txhsws.
For more information about TSTC, visit TSTC.edu.