Los Medanos College (LMC) and supporting industry partners USS-POSCO, Shell, Dow Chemical Company, Mirant Corporation, GWF Power, and Tesoro broke ground last week for the new EETEC lab and classroom building expected to begin housing classes for the upcoming fall semester.
A brief program was presented to a group of industry, city officials and education leaders.
The keynote speaker was LeBaron Woodyard, dean of academic affairs for State Chancellor's Office, California Community Colleges.
The 2,160-square-foot lab and classroom will accommodate up to 35 students per class. Industry partners contributed more than $1 million in financial support and equipment for the building and have been involved in curriculum development.
The State Chancellor's Office provided a grant of almost $600,000 to enable the program to build capacity to respond to the critical shortage of skilled workers. Industry partners estimate hiring 150 new technicians per year for the next 10 years. The program anticipates 55 to 60 graduates per year.
The EETEC program will be available in an intensive, full-time, two-year (four-semester) schedule of day courses. A part-time evening program is currently offered and will continue to be available.
Students may select from two areas of specialization: electrical/electronic technician or instrumentation technician.
The electrical specialization is designed to train electricians to maintain complex electrical automation systems used in the manufacturing and power generation industries.
The instrumentation specialization is designed to train instrument technicians to maintain the process measurement and control systems used in the refineries, chemical plants, biotech plants, pharmaceuticals, water and waste treatment plants.
For more information about the EETEC program, visit www.losmedanos.edu/EETEC or call 925-439-2181, ext. 3105.
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