• College of the Canyons

Santa Clarita, CA

CREATE Renewable Energy Regional Center offers wind, solar, and energy management education. It specializes in

• Curriculum Development
• Faculty Development
• 2+2+2 Career Education Pathways, Outreach, and Articulation
• Assessment
• Dissemination

Students Get Energized Following Career Paths in Renewable Energy Fields

The colleges in CREATE’s consortium are demonstration sites for regional technical workshops that develop and test curricula, delivery systems, and other innovative professional development programs. Professional development for technical educators is a focus area. Since 1999, more than 25,000 students have completed at least 1 for-credit course developed by CREATE. Between 2010 and 2014, approximately 8,000 undergraduate students and 9,000 pre-college students are expected to be affected by the new CREATE Renewable Energy Regional Center, which is based on the mechatronics foundation of the previous CREATE ATE center.

Through strong partnerships with the consortium’s partner colleges, renewable energy employers, state agencies, and other renewable energy programs and organizations across the nation, CREATE will help meet the demonstrated demand for a diverse and gender-balanced workforce of highly skilled renewable energy technicians.

Businesses Benefit from Expanded Partnerships

CREATE is a joint effort among high schools, California State universities, 9 community colleges, and more than 50 large high-tech engineering and technology employers.

CREATE offers a regional approach to educating renewable energy technicians. Its goal is to educate the future workforce in a wide range of emerging and high-demand fields. CREATE colleges work with each other and in conjunction with regional employers to provide students with high-quality, industry relevant educational options. Students who are exploring renewable energy employment opportunities, upgrading industry relevant skills, or planning to continue their education at a 4-year university can all benefit from a renewable energy education at a CREATE partner institution.

CREATE works closely with industry to develop programs that teach students the skills they need to succeed. In December 2009, CREATE hosted the Southwestern U.S. Energy Employer Summit, which brought utilities such as Pacific Gas and Electric, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, and Sempra Energy together with solar, wind, and education representatives to discuss their future needs for employees in the Southwestern U.S. This meeting was 1 of 7 regional conversations on energy technician education sponsored by the National Science Foundation. In November 2010, CREATE sponsored a Development of Curriculum (DACUM) industry panel on wind technician jobs across California. Representatives of California wind companies provided an in-depth analysis of the skills they seek in wind technicians. The analysis will be used to validate the American Wind and Energy Association’s skills set and to conduct a gap analysis of existing curricula.