Skip to main content

Popular Program Getting Vets Ready for Jobs In Solar Industry

Solar Ready Vets

Graduating class from Hill Air Force Base at a solar array on base.

Nearly a year after President Barack Obama visited Utah and challenged the Department of Energy (DOE) to increase the scope of its Solar Ready Vets program administered in the state by SLCC, a DOE official is lauding the program as a model for others across the nation.

"This partnership with community colleges for us is designed to meet the needs of a broad range of American citizens and help them get access to jobs in the dynamic clean energy sector," said Deputy Secretary of Energy Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall at SLCC's Solar Ready Vets commencement ceremony in late March at Hill Air Force Base. Eighteen veterans graduated in the ceremony. The program trains veterans for careers in the high-tech solar industry.

Deputy Secretary of Energy Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall.

SLCC in association with the DOE tweaked the Solar Ready Vets curriculum for Hill Air Force Base to help meet the solar energy industry's job-training needs in Utah and beyond. “We’re partnering with community colleges at each base,” Sherwood-Randall said. “Community colleges are an essential part in this endeavor.” She said more people in the U.S. are now working in the solar industry than in coal mining, and a third of all new electric-generating capacity in this country comes from solar technology.

Solar industry job fair at SLCC for veterans.

The day before the ceremony, veterans and service members attended a solar industry jobs fair at SLCC’s Miller Campus. They had just finished an intensive training program in areas such as photovoltaic installation and design, electrical theory, troubleshooting and solar technology sales. At the fair, there was a shared attraction to hiring vets. Vivint Solar recruiter Robert Freebairn said his Lehi-based company is rapidly expanding and hiring hundreds of veterans who, if they’re coming out of the Solar Ready Vets program, are able to “hit the ground running.”

“It’s going to be a great technology that will be booming," said Jess Shelley who is leaving the Army National Guard after six years, and completed Solar Ready Vets. "I decided to jump on the train while it’s still in the station,” Shelley said. Clarence Gleton, a father of new twin girls and senior airman leaving the Air Force after six years, agrees. “I thought it would be a great time to get into the industry.”

Clarence Gleton.

Judy Fisher, SLCC program manager for solar technologies and the Energy Institute, said Obama’s visit last year to Utah brought a lot of attention to the solar program at SLCC. She has had to cap attendance in some classes and move others into larger classrooms. Fisher wants to add a course that focuses on designing solar energy systems for residential clients. She praised the Solar Ready Vets graduates: “This was a great group of students."

Obama’s goal is to see 75,000 Americans educated and trained to work in solar energy jobs by 2020. Over the past year, several U.S. military bases, including Hill, have incorporated Solar Ready Vets into offerings for service members transitioning to civilian life. SLCC’s Veterans completed in eight weeks a program that normally takes 16 weeks to complete. Some of the coursework is offered online, which allows active-duty service members at Hill the ability to learn without having to leave base. It’s one of the Solar Ready Vets “firsts” pointed out at graduation by SLCC President Dr. Deneece G. Huftalin. “SLCC is the first community college in the nation to receive approval from the VA to allow GI funding for this program,” she said. “Utah is also the first cohort in the nation to serve an Air Force installation.” Huftalin said she is proud of SLCC’s partnership with the DOE and the DOD through Solar Ready Vets, calling it a significant step toward supplying workers for low cost, reliable and cleaner energy for the country.

Sierra Copley.

Comments

  1. There's a chance you are eligible for a new solar program.
    Click here and find out if you qualify now!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

SLCC's Undergraduate Annual Research Conference Registration Deadline

Salt Lake Community College’s annual Undergraduate Projects, Performances, Presentations, and Research Conference (UP3RC) is set to take place on April 2, at the Taylorsville Redwood Campus, offering students a chance to showcase their academic achievements, fostering a culture of intellectual exchange.  The UP3RC is an annual event designed to celebrate and highlight the academic accomplishments of undergraduate students. It provides a supportive environment for students to share their work, hone their presentations skills, receive constructive feedback, and engage in meaningful discussions with their peers and faculty. All SLCC departments and programs, including faculty and staff, are encouraged to support and visit the day of the event. Students with their poster from last year's UPRC event “The goal of this event is to make sure every school and student is given the opportunity to participate,” says Dr. Kamal Bewar, interim director of the STEM Learning Center, who is chairin

SLCC Business School is Utah’s First to be Named Exclusively After a Woman

Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) proudly announces a partnership with the Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation to modernize its Business Building and transform its School of Business. The improvements are made possible through a generous $10 million gift from the Miller Family Foundation and Gail Miller, the largest-ever single cash donation received by the college.  SLCC is renaming its Business Building the Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Business Building in honor of the Miller family’s legacy and contributions to the community. The business school will be named the Gail Miller School of Business in recognition of the strong business acumen Gail Miller displays as a community leader and as the owner and immediate past chair of the Larry H. Miller Company. This name change will make SLCC home to the only business school in Utah and one of only a few in the country to be named exclusively after a woman.  “We are deeply humbled by the generosity of Gail and the Miller fam

You’re Invited to A Party! Open House Kicks off New Herriman Campus

  Complimentary food truck fare, live music, and family activities spotlight new campus.   There’s something for everyone at the upcoming Herriman Campus Community Open House on Friday, August 4 (3:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.). See schedule below.   The public is invited to celebrate the opening of this new campus with festivities that include free local food truck fare, live music, and a Mocktail Mixer, where you can mingle with others, including Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) and University of Utah (U of U) faculty.   Families with kids can engage in face painting and a craft station, see the Super Mario Brothers movie, and high-five mascots Brutus, Swoop and Yeti.   This is an opportunity to have some summer fun for all ages and to check out the Juniper building on the new 88-acre SLCC Herriman campus.    At the open house, prospective students and their families can meet SLCC and U of U faculty and staff, take a tour the building, or even check out the Application & Transfer Lab a