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MSU-Great Falls Students Begin Sustainable Energy Technician Program

By KFBB News Team

Story Created: Sep 2, 2010 at 4:39 PM MST

Story Updated: Sep 2, 2010 at 4:39 PM MST

Montana has the potential to be a leading state in wind energy production, and the new Sustainable Energy Technician Program at MSU-Great Falls is looking to train students to work in that growing industry.

"We've had a lot of really good interest in the program, with little to no publicity on the college's part,” said program director Jason Harding. “We've had no problem filling the class up. We constantly have calls with people wanting to know about the program and how to get in."

With one week of classes complete, the new Sustainable Energy Technician Program at the MSU-Great Falls College of is in full swing. And students, along with program director Jason Harding, are already moving into the beginning coursework.

"They’re going to get a lot of background in electricity, electronic components, how electricity works, and go over the basics of mechanical systems, things like that," said Harding.

For its first year, the one-year and two-year Sustainable Energy Program has 14 students, with plans to add a second year of study, and a second class of new students next year.

"One-year is just a certificate of Applied Science, and just touches on all of it, gets you a good basic knowledge. The second-year program is the Associate of Applied Science program, and gets more in-depth into everything."

The program prepares students for an entry-level technician job in the energy field, with many of the students here in Montana looking for careers on the state's wind farms. But student David Einan chose MSU-Great Falls because the Sustainable Energy Technician Program gave him options.

"The thing I like about this program here is it’s not just wind,” said Einan. “They're going through all kinds of energy here, so I'm not exclusively interested in wind. I'll look into it, but I like solar and the fuel cells."

And with the possibility of moving within a company to different types of work and training, Einan sees completing his two-year degree as a good start to the fast-growing energy field.

"I really think that it’s important,” said Einan. “I think there is a lot of potential with it. You can go anywhere across the world I think, and they're doing something with sustainable energy. As far as getting a degree, I'm really hopeful it will be really easy to find a job with it."

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