Green Building, Renewable Energy Degree Programs Debut

The New York State Education Department and the State University of New York (SUNY) have approved a new four-year Renewable and Alternative Energy Applications program starting in the Fall 2006 semester at SUNY Canton.

“The Alternative and Renewable Energy Applications program fits with our role of providing bachelor’s degree opportunities in high-need specialized areas,” said Brown. “This SUNY Canton program is on the cutting edge of energy technology. Students will be studying concepts that will augment or replace conventional energy systems.”

The program will focus on wind, solar, geothermal, fuel cell, biofuel and other emerging technologies.

“Students who graduate from this program will ultimately work with architects and engineers to create viable renewable energy solutions for commercial and residential facilities,” said Canino School of Engineering Technology Assistant Professor Michael Newtown. “They will be looking at all different forms of energy and combining them to come up with sustainable solutions.”

Students in the program will also take classes such as Engineering Technology, Mechanical Engineering Technology, and Machine Design, in conjunction with newly designed alternative energy classes during their first two years. During the last two years, students will specialize in their chosen fields of solar, wind, geothermal, and biofuel energy courses. “During the final semester of their senior year, students will design alternative energy systems for small residential or commercial buildings and present their designs to the community,” Newtown added.

The New York State Department of Labor projects there will be approximately 750 job openings in this field by the year 2010. Emerging careers in this field will be further stimulated by Governor George Pataki’s Executive Order 111, which requires that New York State facilities acquire 20% of their power through renewable resources by 2010. The State’s Renewable Portfolio Standard also requires that at least 25% of the electricity sold to consumers in New York State be generated from renewable resources by 2013.

SUNY Canton also has a biodiesel research lab. Students will be able to do research using the college’s anaerobic digester, which converts farm-grade waste from the teRiele Brothers’ Farm in Canton to create heat and power for the College.

SUNY Canton has recently signed articulation agreements with Lomonosov Moscow State University and Osaka College of Foreign languages and International Business in Japan, allowing international scholars the ability to obtain a SUNY Canton degree locally, or abroad.

In other news, the Boston Architectural Center is offering a certificate in Sustainable Design. The program can be taken on campus or online, and is taught by green building design professionals. Courses are offered in eight week segments throughout the year, and can be taken individually, or applied to undergraduate or graduate certificate programs.

To earn the certificate, students are required to complete six of the following courses:

Sustainable Design as a Way of Thinking

Site Design, Landscaping and Site-Water Issues

Site Design, Landscaping and Site-Water Issues

Building Envelope

Environmental Systems

Materials, Resources, and Indoor Environmental Quailty

LEED Rating System Overview

Sustainable Design in Practice

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Green Design: [sorry this link is no longer available]Renewable Energy http://www.canton.edu/