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MATC Creating Online Courses and Resources
to
Teach New Renewable Energy Technologies
Madison Area Technical College is launching a major
effort to improve the teaching of renewable energy technologies
in technical colleges and high schools. The initiative will feature
new online courses, interactive learning tools and other resources
to better prepare qualified technicians to work in the fast growing
renewable energy industry.
A $500,000 National Science Foundation
(NSF) grant -- the second such grant MATC has announced in the
past month -- will fund the “Partnerships
in Educational Resources for Renewable Energy Technologies” project.
“This project addresses a critical high-tech workforce challenge:
how can we make sure that teaching keeps pace with new and emerging
technologies in rapidly changing fields like renewable energy?” said
Dr. Joy McMillan, director of MATC’s Center for New and Converging
Technologies.
Soaring fuel costs and environmental concerns have
made alternatives, such as solar energy, wind power and hybrid
vehicles, popular with
many consumers. That, in turn, has created a demand for technicians
trained in the latest renewable and alternative energy technologies.
But much of the college and high school curriculum in this area
has not kept up with changes in the industry, McMillan said.
Under
the grant, MATC with other college partners will develop online
courses that two-year colleges and high schools can use
to revitalize existing programs. The courses will include renewable
energy, energy management, alternative transportation, photovoltaic,
solar home design, wind power, and biomass. MATC will also create
a series of cutting edge, web-based, interactive “learning
objects” that give students virtual access to renewable energy
technologies.
“Technical colleges have the flexibility to
respond quickly to economic trends and changing workforce needs.
Through this project,
we can
help meet the emerging needs of the renewables industry and create
career pathways for energy technicians using innovative, learner-centered
strategies,” McMillan said.
MATC chemistry instructor Ken
Walz will direct the project, whose principal investigators are
MATC instructor Barb Anderegg, Bill
Johnson of Alliant Energy, and McMillan.
“Technical colleges
are key partners in our efforts to promote renewable energy by
ensuring that the people who sell, install
and service
renewable technologies in our homes and businesses are well trained,” said
Johnson, who is Alliant Energy’s Agricultural Compliance
Director in Portage. “I am enthusiastic about what MATC can
accomplish through this latest NSF grant to provide the latest
in renewable energy education to students seeking careers in this
growing field.”
MATC is one of the largest of the Wisconsin
Technical College System’s
16 colleges and serves approximately 50,000 individuals annually.
It provides a comprehensive curriculum of technical, liberal arts
and science, adult basic education and life enrichment studies
and activities, as well as customized employee training. MATC provides
training in more than 100 career programs. It awards associate
degrees, vocational diplomas and certificates, and offers non-degree
courses. The college serves all or parts of 12 counties located
in south-central Wisconsin and offers instruction through five
campuses and various other locations throughout the district.
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Last
Modified:
July 28, 2005
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