San Diego State and Cuyamaca College have been chosen as part of a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) program intended to streamline career paths for students interested in the clean energy economy.
They are among a group of higher education institutions tapped to serve as Centers of Excellence for DOE’s Industrial Assessment Centers (IAC) Program. Those selected as part of the competitive process will receive a combined $18.7 million in funding from President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
The Western Center of Excellence at San Francisco State University will partner with SDSU and Cuyamaca, along with San Jose State University and Laney College in Oakland, to “apply their expertise in data-driven tracking to evaluate and improve manufacturer performance and renewable energy,” according to DOE.
They also will work on energy demand management, thermal systems design and waste and water management to enhance manufacturing competitiveness across the west.
Other recipients include centers at Oklahoma State, Georgia Tech, Lehigh University in Pennsylvania and Texas A&M.
The new regional Centers of Excellence will expand the IAC Program by serving as regional hubs that collaborate and coordinate with government, nonprofit, labor and industry to train clean energy workers and support small- and medium-sized manufacturers.
“This is a direct investment in the next generation of American workers that will help ensure America’s global leadership in advanced manufacturing and green building technologies,” Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm said in a Friday statement.
The government also set aside $54 Million to expand IACs to community colleges, trade schools and union training programs, while creating new Building Training and Assessment Centers.
That funding will be allocated through an application process. An informational webinar will be held at 2 p.m. April 18. Concept papers are required and due on May 25, with full applications due on July 31.
