Going Green Online: Distance Learning Prepares Students
President Barack Obama has touted the development of a new green economy as a tool to renuild the American economy while creating new jobs. This new economy requires entrepreneurs and innovators to create new businesses and invent new technologies. It also requires technicians with specialized skills to build wind farms, operate renewable fuels plants, and retrofit homes to conserve energy.
In response to these needs, U.S. community colleges have created programs to train a new crop of middle-skill green workers. Many programs aimed at training workers for green jobs serve niche job markets. As a result, some colleges have begun targeting a broader student base beyond their immediate communities. Online degrees and certificates allow community colleges in all community types to participate in retraining the workforce for green occupational skills. Many of our nation’s smallest, most rural campuses now serve as hubs for educating future generations of green workers, and much of their success is due, at least in part, to the availability of online training.
Githens, R., & Sauer, T. (2010). Going green online: Distance learning prepares students. Community College Journal, 80(6), 32-35.