"After sharing Hocking College's success story on the SEED site and our own college's entrepreneurship and green workforce efforts, we've strengthened our curriculum partnerships."

Julie Maurer

Campus Administrator

Central Ohio Technical College

Discussing energy sector training relations with Ohio's four-year universities

Welcome New SEED Members, April 

Community College of Rhode Island

Warwick, RI

Flint Hills Technical College

Emporia, KS

Guam Community College

Barrigada, Guam

Lewis and Clark Community College

Godfrey, IL

Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology

Okmulgee, OK

Rend Lake College

Ina, IL

Valencia College

Orlando, FL

If your college is not a member yet, join today, or refer a college to join and begin taking advantage of free resources SEED offers.

Sector Resources for Educational Institutions

Great Lakes Regional Pollution Prevention Roundtable 

A variety of resources on topics including air, energy, and water.

Flint Hills Technical College, KS, Sustainability Studies Program

AAS degree prepares students for an advanced degree as well as employment. Comprehensive curricular materials offer program development tools.

SEED Center registered users may view this resource.  Register now, it's free. 

Don't Miss...  

Find a comprehensive list of events and announcements on theseedcenter.org. 

Announcements 

Applications due 7/2/2012

First Wind Technician AS college textbook focused on wind turbine maintenance for the US.

By Wayne Kilcollins, Wind Power Technology Instructor at Northern Maine Community College

2012 Princeton Review's Guide to 322 Green Colleges

Don't Miss... Conferences:

Sustainable Energy Education and Training (SEET) Technology Workshop

6/10-22/12

Golden, CO

Agriculture-based Renewable Energy Professional Development Workshop

 Applications due 5/15/12

6/11-14/12

Iowa State University

Ames, IA

ACUPCC Climate Leadership Summit

6/21-22/12

American University, Washington, DC

Don't Miss... Webinars:    

 AASHE  

Higher Education & Industry Collaboration to Build a Sustainable Future

5/10/12, 1:15 PM ET

JCCC Monthly Sustainability Webinar

5/16/12, 1:00PM ET

Issue 16, May 9, 2012   

Last month, AACC and SEED announced the exciting new Green Genome project that will help community colleges realize a strategic and integrated approach to green growth, talent development, and sustainability.  Included is an awards program.  Five winning colleges will each receive $8,000, plus a set of state-of-the-art Bahco brand Snap-on tools valued at $7,000. The winning colleges will be showcased nationally by SEED and AACC. Learn more about the awards below.

It was a pleasure seeing many of you at the recent AACC Convention. While our semesters draw to a close, we have a lot to look forward to with continued sustainability opportunities and clean economy workforce development. AACC's SEED Initiative looks forward to continuing to support colleges in these efforts.

Sincerely,

Dr. Jerry Weber

Chair, AACC Sustainability Task Force

President, College of Lake County, IL

SEED Community of Action, Policies for Green Jobs

Conference call TODAY, 5/9/12, 1:00 PM ET (details)

Interested in the college role in shaping clean energy policies?  

Join a robust conversation about ways to create exponential growth of green jobs and specific practical possibilities. Ashok Gupta, national clean energy and green policy expert, will share high impact opportunities in this arena. All wanting to work toward developing policies to grow green jobs are welcome to join.

Clean Energy Investments and Job Policies

Positive but Cautious News Surrounding Clean Energy Sector

By Shawn M. Strange

Senior associate and manager, The SEED Center

New research released by The Pew Charitable Trusts reveals that $48 billion was invested in clean energy technology in the United States in 2011, a 42% increase over 2010. This puts the U.S. ahead of China as the leading country in green R&D. This is great news for the future of the industry. However, another recent report, Beyond Boom & Bust, warns that expiring clean energy policies and incentive programs could inhibit sustainable job growth. With jobs on the line, community colleges have a real opportunity to support green economic development efforts at regional levels.

As seen in Massachusetts and Maryland, green jobs sectors are thriving, and community colleges will continue to play a major role in their growth by remaining aware of industry trends, supporting regional policy efforts, and engaging with the right partners. For other important new information see the Bureau of Labor Statistics green career information portal as well as the information from their Green Jobs Initiative which details the number, industrial and geographic distribution of jobs. Also see SEED's policy toolkit on Creating an Environment for Growing Green Jobs. Read more. 

Sustainability Leadership Workshop

AACC Convention Recap 

SEED's inaugural sustainability leadership workshop, held in Orlando last month during the AACC Annual Convention, provided 24 senior college administrators from across the country practical tools and guidance for building clean energy workforce programs, overseeing campus-wide sustainability change management efforts, and leveraging state funding. The half-day workshop was led by current and former college presidents including Diana Van Der Ploeg, Butte College, CA; Jerry Weber, College of Lake County, IL; Mitch Thomashow, Unity College, ME; Sheila Ortego, Santa Fe Community College, NM; Michael Burke, Milwaukee Area Technical College, WI; and Jennifer Wimbish, Cedar Valley College, TX.

"The workshop provided several gold nuggets we will incorporate into our Green+Sustainability initiative," said Billie Hardin of the Kentucky Community and Technical College System. "[It] drove home the importance of awards, rewards, and recognition as it relates to developing a culture of sustainability on our campuses."

Congratulations to workshop stipend recipients from these SEED-member colleges:

• Athens Technical College
• Black Hawk College
• Clover Park Technical College
• Jefferson Davis Community College
• Kentucky Community & Technical College System
• Lincoln Land Community College
• Tri-County Technical College
• Wallace State Community College

SEED & Reclaiming the American Dream

The American Association of Community Colleges' (AACC) recently released report, Reclaiming the American Dream: A Report from the 21st-Century Commission on the Future of Community Colleges, calls for dramatic changes to community colleges to ensure U.S. competitiveness. Seven specific recommendations for reforming the country's community college system are outlined. Centering on the "Three Rs" of reform, they include redesign of students' educational experiences, a reinvention of institutional roles, and a resetting of the system to create partnerships and incentives for student and institutional success.

Strong alignment is found between SEED's principles of sustainability and clean economy workforce development and the report's recommendations. Specifically, efforts to "refocus the community college mission and redefine institutional roles to meet 21st-century education and employment needs." To support strong ties between SEED and the AACC 21st Century Commission, the SEED Sustainability Task Force (STF) of college presidents will put forth suggestions on how the Commission can strategically incorporate SEED's core concepts as they move to implement report recommendations.

Download the Program Review and read colleges' success stories. 

Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC)
Community Collaboration Supporting Workforce Excellence

NICC and Dubuque, IA stakeholders have created a synergistic relationship supporting sustainable living for the entire community. As a key partner in the community discussions, NICC is a leader in offering green programming that supports expanding green industries and increases community awareness.

San Diego City College, CA

Sustainable Urban Agriculture Program Builds on the Success of Seeds @ City and is a model program for sustainable agriculture programs in higher education.

 SEED Colleges in the News

Discover details on these newsmakers and send us your clean energy and sustainability news. We'll share it with the SEED community.

Madison Area Technical College, WI

Renewable Energy for International Development program in Costa Rica is featured International Educator.

Austin Community College, TX

Programming aims to steer women into green energy jobs.

Metropolitan Community College, NE 

Unveils New Solar Training Facility