Students learn green job technology as demand for home, business weatherization increases
Weatherization students learn by doing -- in this case learning how to install windows in a small "house" constructed in the classroom.
Students can now train for green jobs at Focus: HOPE with the launch of a 10-week full-time weatherization program.
They develop practical skills to make homes and businesses more energy efficient. The program teaches installing insulation and weatherstripping, reroofing a structure, replacing doors and windows and reglazing windows.
Developed in partnership with Henry Ford Community College and WARM Training Center,
the weatherization program teaches math and reading skills to help students with tasks like estimating materials needed for weatherization projects.
Graduates are finding employment with area contractors. Demand for weatherization specialists is expected to increase. Michigan anticipates receiving nearly $250 million in federal funding to help low- income residents make their homes more energy efficient.
The weatherization training can start graduates on a new career path. After completing the program, they can pursue additional course work at Henry Ford Community College in energy auditing or in construction.
Did You Know...
Home weatherization workers are expected to be a big area of jobs growth in the coming months, with enough federal stimulus money in the pipeline to retrofit up to 38,000 homes in Michigan,
- mlive.com, Nov. 2009
