Program Design & Delivery

Milwaukee Area Technical College: Creating Innovative Pre-College Courses Laddering into Green Career Certificates and Degrees

In response to dynamic industry needs, Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC) created four new advisory boards for emerging green energy programs. During industry partner meetings, employers shared their concern about serious gaps in skills training for potential workers and employees. At the same time, college and community leaders continued to struggle with high school dropout rates of 50% for MATC’s service area. In part, to address these problems, college leaders and faculty members developed innovative transitional courses to provide students with the preparatory course work needed to complete GED courses or to move into green certificate and degree programs with the appropriate math and science course work.

Program faculty and Pre-College faculty collaborated for six months to align curriculum and create curriculum for students needing additional work to complete their GED or to strengthen their math and science skills while still making progress toward a green degree or certificate. The faculty modified an existing basic math and science preparatory course, developed an elementary resource course and aligned a program specific introductory course that ladders students into a certificate that, in turn, ladders into a green diploma or one of the applied sustainable environmental programs.

The Basic Environmental Studies certificate ladders into one of five programs within the Applied
Environmental Studies cluster. For efficiencies, students from all five fields enroll in the first two classes through Pre-College Education. The third course in the certificate is part of the green program taught by program faculty. Courses are in sequence by complexity and students enroll in and complete courses sequentially. The first and second courses in the sequence do not receive college credit; the third course is a college credit course.

The first course, Basic Applied Math and Science, is a survey of rudimentary math and science, drawing on examples from the workplace. Following the in class math and science workshop, students go on site visits where they are exposed to real applications of math and science. A number of employers partner with MATC, opening their workplaces and field-work to students in green collar occupations such as:

• Energy management
• Renewable energy installers, site assessors, service providers and designers
• Manufactures of green parts, equipment and systems
• Renewable energy

The second course, Basic Green Resource Practices and Technologies, introduces students to units of measure, reading simple instruments and green practices. Additional topics covered are over usage and pollution. Faculty reference site visits from the previous course for continuity while introducing several speakers from residential, commercial and industrial settings. As a final topic, the concept of energy efficiency is examined.

The third course is a transitional course laddering into a degree, diploma or certificate program.
It is taught by individual program/department faculty. The five program courses are survey courses and are appropriate for those new to the field:

• Introduction to Environmental Health and Water Quality Technology
• Buildings, Energy and Technology (or Sustainable Facilities Operations)
• Introduction to Commercial and Industrial Efficiencies
• Introduction to Power Engineering
• Introduction to Renewable Energy

MATC has created innovative curriculum strategies to address employer partner concerns about skill deficits for current and future employees. Additionally, MATC has created sustainable career pathways to support students lacking appropriate math and science skills sets to succeed in green jobs programs.

Additional Information:

Joseph J. Jacobsen
Associate Dean of Environmental Studies and
Director of Energy Conservation and Advanced Manufacturing Center (ECAM)
jacobsjj@matc.edu

- Milwaukee Area Technical College Center for Energy Conservation and Advanced Manufacturing (ECAM)
- Milwaukee Area Technical College 2011 Climate Action Plan
- Milwaukee Area Technical College: Green College Information (site designed by MATC students)
- Green Energy Summit and Exposition, March 6-8, 2013
- Reducing Carbon, Minimizing Cost, and Preparing Students for Tomorrow's Jobs
President’s Climate Commitment webinar, October 17, 2011
Joe Jacobsen and Jeff Kwiatkowski
Please note: there may be a $25 fee to download file if not a American College and University President’s Climate Commitment institution.