BC rolls out 3-class certificate series on renewable energy
Oct. 17—Bakersfield College dove deeper into preparing the local workforce for a transition to cleaner energy with the start Monday of a non-credit course exploring Kern County's potential for producing bioenergy, wind, solar and even nuclear power.
The free, 36-hour class titled "Sustainable Energy" is the first of three courses geared toward helping students find employment within an array of energy fields that either already exist in Kern or which are expected to be created in coming years as investment money follows what many see as a growing list of inviting local opportunities.
The series, which continues in the spring, does not lead to class credit but allows students to earn a certificate seen as improving their chances for landing a job in the industry.
"if you're working for the bioenergy industry, manufacturing (or) industrial technology development," BC engineering professor Maryam Jalalifarahani said in a promotional video, "having this certificate will definitely help you (gain) the upper hand in having your resume stand out."
Renewable energy has become a big focus at BC and its parent organization, the Kern Community College District, since the formalization of its unique partnership with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Last year the district received a pledge of $2 million from Valley Strong Credit Union to support creation of the Valley Strong Energy Institute. This year, the district received $50 million in state money toward establishment of the California Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Kern leads the state in development of solar and wind energy. Its stature as a clean energy hub stands to grow as innovation companies propose energy storage and waste-to-energy projects such as gasification plants that would turn woody biomass and even municipal waste into renewable natural gas or hydrogen.
Enrollment is open until Oct. 24, which is also the final day on which students can drop the course from their schedule without having it show up as a withdrawal. Information on how to sign up is online at https://www.bakersfieldcollege.edu/marketing/promotion/modern-energy-certificate-of-completion.
The class on sustainable energy runs through Dec. 9, with classes from 5:30 to 7:35 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays. Geared toward beginners, it is intended to teach students how to assess energy use, potential for reducing energy use in industry and calculating potential use of different sources of energy.
Energy data analysis will be the focus of the second course in the series, set to run from Jan. 14 through March 9. In it, students will learn how to analyze energy-related data using spreadsheets and drawing upon publicly available data.
The third class in the series will center on carbon capture and storage, a technology aimed at fighting climate change by pulling carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere, or from a smokestack, and burying it deep underground for an indefinite period. Several such projects have been proposed locally, partly because the area's geology is considered ideal for it. County government hopes to spearhead a public-private partnership that would bring together different applications of the activity, known as CCS.
Extending from March 11 to May 11, the class will go over acidification of the world's oceans, modeling of CCS in Kern and approaches to achieving carbon neutrality. Another topic will be emerging career opportunities.
