Oregon Colleges Honored for Green Energy Programs

Press Release

Oregon Colleges Honored for Green Energy Programs

Today, Senator Gordon Smith commended Oregon Institute of Technology, Lane Community College, and Columbia Gorge Community College for becoming the nation's first schools to create renewable and sustainable energy programs. Smith submitted a congressional statement to honor the three schools' work in renewable energy education and innovation.

"These three fine schools will help supply our state and nation with a vibrant and skilled workforce to accommodate a future of renewable, independent and clean energy," said Smith. "With plentiful natural resources and innovative educational programs, Oregon has become a breeding ground for renewable energy. I am proud these schools are continuing our state's long history of ingenuity in environmental policy and practice."

After receiving a 1.6 million federal grant, Columbia Gorge Community College developed job training programs in wind, solar, biofuels production and hydropower. The program is the only one of its kind on the west coast. Just in the Pacific Northwest, developers of wind energy facilities will need 300-500 additional workers in the next decade. Since the fall of 2007, Columbia Gorge Community College has offered a one-year Certificate and a two-year Associate of Applied Science Degree in Renewable Energy Technology.

Lane Community College has certificates and two-year degree programs to train students in energy management and renewable energy. Graduates of the program are in high demand by renewable energy companies. Lane Community College is quickly gaining recognition as a national leader in sustainability and has won five awards in the past two years, including the Campus Sustainability Leadership Award from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, and the Outstanding College Recycling Program Award from the National Recycling Coalition.

The Oregon Institute of Technology (OIT) has earned distinction for offering the nation's first four-year undergraduate degree program in renewable energy. The Institute is on track to graduate the first class of students this year. Graduating students can seek employment in variety of fields including design, engineering, installation, auditing and programming within the renewable energy sector. OIT is not only teaching renewable energy, but also living it by becoming the only campus in the world to build a geothermal power plant that will power the entire campus. In 2007, Senator Smith and Wyden secured a $1 million grant to boost OIT's efforts in geothermal energy. Last January, Senator Smith was on campus to examine the plant's progress.

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