MHCC partners for new energy training

Mt. Hood Community College is planning to develop a training program for energy plant operators within the next three years.

The program would be in partnership with Development Partners, the sponsors of the proposed Troutdale Energy Center, and NAES Corporation.
As a part of the training program, students would use the Troutdale Energy Center as a training facility.

The Troutdale Energy Center is one of numerous proposals in the making to provide Portland General Electric a power source for their customers.
PGE spokesperson Steve Corson said PGE has submitted an Integrated Resource Plan request to the Public Utility Commission of Oregon, which outlines strategies to meet the region’s electricity needs for the next 20 years.

As a part of the Integrated Resource Plan, the Boardman Coal Plant would be closed by 2020.

Corson said PGE hopes the request is approved by June.

After approval, Corson said PGE would request bids and begin the process of evaluating them, which would include the Troutdale Energy Center proposal.
“At this point, (Development Partners) haven’t submitted a proposal yet,” Corson said, adding that as such, they don’t know what the details of the Troutdale Energy Center proposal are.

If a bid fits the needs the needs and requirements of PGE, they will accept the bid, which Corson said they hope to do sometime in the summer.

According to the Troutdale Energy Center proposal, the facility will be a multi-million dollar project and is expected to create hundreds of construction jobs and 25 to 35 technical operation jobs as well.

Marc Goldberg, MHCC dean of instruction for adult basic skills who has been working with Cassie McVeety, vice president of college advancement, has met with officials from NAES Corporation, which provides operation and management services to energy plants. According to the Troutdale Energy Center proposal, the facility will be a multi-million dollar project and is expected to create hundreds of construction jobs and 25 to 35 technical operation jobs as well.

Marc Goldberg, MHCC dean of instruction for adult basic skills who has been working with Cassie McVeety, vice president of college advancement, has met with officials from NAES Corporation, which provides operation and management services to energy plants.

According to a post on the MHCC website, the program may take up to three years to realize, though Goldberg said he hopes it won’t take that long.

“We are looking to possibly do something sooner. The question about three years is under the assumption that we’re building a new two-year associate’s degree. We’re still in the preliminary stages of fleshing out what this partnership looks like,” he said.

Being in the early stages, Goldberg said some specifics of the program, such as how long it would take to complete or whether students would receive a degree or certificate upon its completion, have yet to be worked out.

“We need to make sure it meets the needs of the employer, that it meets the priorities and strategies of the college. It’s too hard to simply answer, ‘Is it three years?’ Well, we’re not even certain what we’re building quite yet, but we’ve talked about a lot of different ideas.”

As well as employment opportunities, students may also be able to take part in internships, some of which may be paid internships, said Goldberg.

“In the last meeting we had with (NAES), we talked about the idea of internships for MHCC students at their power plant in Hillsboro,” he said, adding that some paid summer internships have been among the discussions.
“It’s exciting to be engaged with an employer that is serious in its proposal to build a new plant in their district and is going to be hiring these 25-30 employees to start,” said Goldberg.

Although the training program would be an addition to MHCC academics, customized training is not something new to the college.

“Our workforce development division does a lot of customized training for employers, so we do a lot of customized training for employers in our district already. We partner with Boeing Portland, which is a few miles from here, and that’s one of the largest employers in the district,” said Goldberg.

Goldberg said one the reasons power plant companies have been looking to train and acquire employees is because “in a conversation I had with an employer, they said there’s a lot of folks in our industry who are getting ready to retire. There’s a lack of knowledge and interest in the energy field. I think it’s exciting to hear about an industry where the average age is close to retirement and that this employer is coming to us and saying, ‘We’d love to work with you, because we know that these employees are not going to be around much longer,'” he said.

Asked what value the program could bring to students, Goldberg said, “It’s another option for students who may be interested in this type of work.”
Goldberg said the program has more to offer students than just power plant management.

“There’s a tie-in with computer information systems, tie-in with engineering and there’s a tie-in with environmental sustainability,” he said.