Saturday morning in full swing along Route 66.

The old road has been through a lot — dust storms, economic collapse, and the slow decay of the American small town — but on this bright February morning, commerce is thriving.

'A lot of my friends took the traditional college route and are drowning in debt,' Daniels says. 'My friends who went into the trades? They’re doing great.'

The backdrop is classic downtown Tulsa — red-brick facades that have stood for a century, now housing retailers and yoga studios. Just around the corner is Mother Road Market, a trendy cafeteria dressed up like a food court from the golden days of American malls. Everywhere you look, the old world meets the new.

Working-class families stroll past retro diners and neon-lit novelty shops, spending their hard-earned money.

Near the University of Tulsa, amid the dispensaries and boutiques on Route 66, sits a sturdy old building that houses Tulsa Welding School’s main campus, wedged into three acres.

Work-first mentality

It’s the weekend, yet the parking lot is packed. Local radio station 106.9 KHTT has set up a booth, and a Fox23 cameraman angles for a shot of the crowd gathered for the TWS open house.

Inside, I meet Jon Daniels, the campus president. He’s direct but approachable, with the gravitas of someone who has led before.

“I took the non-traditional route,” he tells me. “Baseball got me into college; the Army paid for the rest.”

Daniels played ball on scholarship, served 10 years in the Army — infantry and artillery — earned his bachelor’s degree along the way, then picked up a master’s in management. Now, he’s working on a doctorate in education, all without taking out a single student loan.

“My dad was a union electrician for 40 years,” he says. “I grew up in a blue-collar family. No one handed me anything.”

That work-first mentality is what he hopes to pass on to the students at Tulsa Welding School. In an era when career paths are littered with debt traps, he offers something different: training that leads straight to high-demand jobs in welding, HVAC, and electrical work — fields where skill, not a diploma, determines success.

The college glut

For decades, the prevailing wisdom has been that college is the only route to a successful career. But with rising tuition and mounting student debt, that belief is being challenged.

Plumbers, electricians, HVAC techs — fields once considered backup plans — have turned out to be the surest path to wealth in an era when the so-called knowledge economy has left a generation buried under student loans.

“A lot of my friends took the traditional college route and are drowning in debt,” Daniels says. “My friends who went into the trades? They’re doing great.”

Even pop culture has taken note. "South Park" took its usual crude swing at the shift, mocking the growing divide between the oversaturated educated class and laborers in high demand. The Atlantic published a more measured lament, noting what it called “the rage of the almost-elite” among college grads.

Kevin Ryan

Get in, get out, get working

Daniels gives me a tour of the school, sprawled out over three city blocks.

Tulsa Welding School operates on a different timeline. Instead of a four-year degree, students complete the program in just seven months.

“Get in, get the training, get to work,” Daniels says.

The curriculum is hands-on, emphasizing real-world skills over lectures. Students learn welding techniques like metal inert gas welding, tungsten inert gas welding, and stick welding. Those in HVAC and electrical programs receive lab training and use virtual reality tools to simulate jobsite scenarios.

“We use Oculus welding simulations. If students want extra practice at home, they put on the headset and weld virtually,” Daniels says.

But it’s not just about the technical skills. Daniels and his team also focus on preparing students for life outside school.

“We don’t just teach welding; we teach soft skills,” Daniels says. “How to dress for an interview, how to talk to an employer.”

The school partners with local businesses to secure job placements. Students can practice for weld tests — often required for employment — on campus before applying for positions.

“You can’t fake skill in the trades,” Daniels says. “Employers will test you on the spot.”

'We're all about second chances'

Recognizing that many students come from tough financial situations, the campus provides resources like a food pantry and donated work gear.

“We want students to be comfortable, so we even keep a pantry on campus with food and work gear donations,” Daniels explains. “Sometimes we get leather boots donated too, because you can’t weld in sneakers.”

For students relocating from out of state, the school works with a housing company to provide temporary accommodations.

“We help students relocate,” Daniels says. “We have a company that provides temporary housing for them while they train.”

For Daniels, Tulsa Welding School isn’t just a place of learning — it’s a place of opportunity.

“We’re all about second chances. A lot of people deserve one,” he says.

Many students enroll after struggling with college, dead-end jobs, or financial hardship. The trades offer a fresh start and, for some, even a sense of purpose.

“Welding is therapeutic for some people. Just like cutting the grass is for me,” Daniels says.

The demand for skilled workers is only increasing. The school’s five campuses — Tulsa, Houston, Dallas, Jacksonville, and Phoenix — are training thousands of students, many of whom secure high-paying jobs right after graduation.

“There’s a massive workforce shortage in the trades, and we’re here to bridge that gap,” Daniels says.

Even as the school embraces new technology, the core mission remains the same: prepare students for meaningful, sustainable careers.

“We’re proud of what we do. We don’t just train people — we change lives,” Daniels says.

Kevin Ryan

Skill-based success

Here in America's reddest state, the die-hard working-class Democrat is all but extinct. Not a single blue county in a presidential election since 2000.

Many former Democrats say the same thing: The Democratic Party just isn’t the same. It abandoned its core constituents. The labor movement lost interest in the working class, and progressive politicians lost interest in labor, leading to a stratified society where wealth flows upward while the middle shrinks.

Meanwhile, the cultural divide deepens.The people of the working class aren't just ignored; they’re openly mocked.

Yet the rise of trade schools and alternative career paths suggests a way forward. The people who were told they needed a college degree to succeed are discovering that success was never about the degree — it’s about the skills.

It’s about dignity. The ability to build something, to create, to fix — these are things no algorithm can replace. At Tulsa Welding School, students aren’t preparing for careers that will be automated away. They’re forging America’s future.