Campus goes green
Konstantin Zhuk
Issue date: 4/30/09 Section: Features
In January, $123 million in federal grant money was allocated by the United States president Barack Obama to 68 community-based job training [programs] in community colleges and community-based institutions, as posted by the U.S. Department of Labor website. Among those that received a portion of that grant was the Los Rios College District. It received just over $2 million in a package titled Green Force Initiative.
Green Force is a federal initiative to create college courses, certificates and degrees that will prepare students to work in fields directed in reducing environmental pollution.
"We are committed to providing programs that will train students for the growing industries of solar technology, sustainable building design and construction, and energy management," said Susie Williams, chair of Communications and Research of Los Rios College District, in an email interview.
The Employment and Training Administration of U.S. Department of Labor stated that the new certificates and degrees that will be offered are designed to give students an opportunity to become trained in a new evolving and demanding job field. The average prospected salary for participants who complete the training at any one of the programs is $49,234 a year.
Judy Beachler, Dean of Instruction And Student Learning, helps assemble courses and make them transferable to four-year institutions. She offered a look into the "green" courses during an interview.
"We are going to hire adjunt faculty members to help us develop course material and instruct the new courses that will be offered beginning Fall 2009," said Beachler.
The new courses that are already in session or will be in upcoming semesters at CRC are: Sustainable Landscape and Water Systems Design, Home Energy Auditing, Sustainable Landscape, Survey of Hybrids, Fuel Cells and Alternative Fuels, Environmental Studies and Sustainability, Green Buildings.
Some existing courses will include new material that ties the course subject into ways of reducing environmental pollution.
An expected 1,240 participants will be enrolled in the training programs.
Debra Sharkey a co-chair of the CRC Sustainability Committee, a Committee devoted to making environmental changes in all areas of college. She also probed the creation of the trasferable Environmental Studies Degree that is already being offered at CRC.
During an interview with her, she said, "The Environmental Studies Degree that we offer is one of the only transferrable degrees [funded by the Green Force] that is offered at the Los Rios district."
Today, the district has now taken a step forward to offer not only individual courses, but also entire degrees in "green" technology at the colleges.
Green Force is a federal initiative to create college courses, certificates and degrees that will prepare students to work in fields directed in reducing environmental pollution.
"We are committed to providing programs that will train students for the growing industries of solar technology, sustainable building design and construction, and energy management," said Susie Williams, chair of Communications and Research of Los Rios College District, in an email interview.
The Employment and Training Administration of U.S. Department of Labor stated that the new certificates and degrees that will be offered are designed to give students an opportunity to become trained in a new evolving and demanding job field. The average prospected salary for participants who complete the training at any one of the programs is $49,234 a year.
Judy Beachler, Dean of Instruction And Student Learning, helps assemble courses and make them transferable to four-year institutions. She offered a look into the "green" courses during an interview.
"We are going to hire adjunt faculty members to help us develop course material and instruct the new courses that will be offered beginning Fall 2009," said Beachler.
The new courses that are already in session or will be in upcoming semesters at CRC are: Sustainable Landscape and Water Systems Design, Home Energy Auditing, Sustainable Landscape, Survey of Hybrids, Fuel Cells and Alternative Fuels, Environmental Studies and Sustainability, Green Buildings.
Some existing courses will include new material that ties the course subject into ways of reducing environmental pollution.
An expected 1,240 participants will be enrolled in the training programs.
Debra Sharkey a co-chair of the CRC Sustainability Committee, a Committee devoted to making environmental changes in all areas of college. She also probed the creation of the trasferable Environmental Studies Degree that is already being offered at CRC.
During an interview with her, she said, "The Environmental Studies Degree that we offer is one of the only transferrable degrees [funded by the Green Force] that is offered at the Los Rios district."
Today, the district has now taken a step forward to offer not only individual courses, but also entire degrees in "green" technology at the colleges.
Be the first to comment on this story