South’s Sustainable Building Bachelor’s Degree Earns $875,000 Grant
With the support of an $875,000 National Science Foundation grant, South Seattle College is working closely with a team of managing partners to train the next generation of building managers in the Pacific Northwest.
The grant, which was awarded in August of 2014, has and will continue to aid the development of a Sustainable Building Science Technology bachelor’s degree at South and the implementation of a professional pipeline to connect a diverse Washington workforce with jobs in the field.
“As building technologies become increasingly sustainable, efficient and complex, and as current facility managers retire, the need for a workforce ready to manage these new technologies is critical,” said Executive Dean Holly Moore from South’s Georgetown campus. “This is especially true in the Pacific Northwest, where ‘green’ building is a top priority.”
South began developing a baccalaureate degree in sustainable building management at the request of industry stakeholders in the region. The NSF grant allowed the college to partner closely with Washington State University’s Energy Program experts and the Edmonds Community College Energy Management program to develop the Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.S.) program, which launched in the fall of 2014. South is currently training its first cohort with Lead Faculty Victoria Hardy, CFM– who has over 30 years of combined industry and educational experience in building management.
South is also working with Apprenticeship and Non-Traditional Employment for Women (ANEW), King County and Northwest tribes to implement a robust outreach plan and recruiting pipeline that will connect not only current professionals looking to advance, but high school students on up looking for a future career. Starting this spring, outreach will spread across Washington and include connecting with minorities, women, veterans and Native Americans.
South’s B.A.S. in Sustainable Building Science Technology focuses on the complexities of building science, energy and building codes, and facility management. A hybrid model – with 80 percent of coursework taking place online and once-a-month Saturday meetings – makes it an accessible program for working professionals that can be completed in six quarters.