Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Representatives from the only college exclusively dedicated to training America's green workforce will address the annual meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) on October 10 in Denver's Colorado Convention Center.
The representatives from Ecotech Institute, the first and only college entirely focused on preparing America's workforce for careers in renewable energy, sustainable design, and energy efficiency, will make two different presentations to the conference.
AASHE is an association of North American colleges and universities that works to create a sustainable future. According to the association, its mission is to "empower higher education to lead the sustainability transformation by providing resources, professional development, and a network of support to enable institutions of higher education to model and advance sustainability in everything they do."
Kyle Crider is Manager of Environmental Operations for Education Corporation of America, the parent company of Ecotech Institute. He says the topics for the talk are as relevant as today's headlines.
"One of the programs we will deliver is called 'Training Tomorrow's Green Collar Workers Today,'" said Crider. "It will be a quick summary of how we (ECA) undertook the research and development process that resulted in the opening of our first Ecotech Institute in Denver."
After nearly two years of market research involving potential students, potential employers, government leaders and industry leaders, ECA determined there was a need and opportunity to create a college focused on technical skills training in renewable energy and sustainability. ECA collaborated closely with industry leaders, other educational institutions, and environmental leaders to define the skills and programs to meet the needs of potential students and employers. Then, the company worked with the same groups to develop the curricula to meet both academic requirements and the emerging needs of the clean energy industry.
The school representatives will also make a presentation entitled "Sustainability Initiatives at Education Corporation of America," examining the company's decision to adopt systematic sustainability and environmental stewardship practices as a result of its experience in researching and developing Ecotech Institute.
"During the development process for Ecotech Institute, we took a hard look at our own environmental footprint. We discovered that many of our best business practices were actually pretty green, but that we could do better," said Crider.
To take sustainability to the next level, ECA is reviewing its budgets and practices with new environmental stewardship principles in place. Toward that goal, Crider says, "ECA is using Ecotech Institute as a sustainability incubator and applying that learning to our other campuses as well as our corporate headquarters in Birmingham, Alabama."
About ECA
Education Corporation of America provides practical, hands-on education for its students and skilled graduates for America's employers. ECA schools serve 23 metropolitan areas in 12 states and include Virginia College, Golf Academy of America, Ecotech Institute, and Culinard, the Culinary Institute of Virginia College. Students worldwide attend Virginia College via online courses. More information about ECA is on the web at www.ecacolleges.com .