Public-Private Partnership will Provide Job Training, Help Recruit Companies to Region, and Bring Good Paying Jobs to Bucks County

(Bristol, PA) – Today, Representative Patrick Murphy (D-8th District) and the Bucks County Community College announced a new director and new courses for the Green Jobs Academy (GJA) in Bucks County. Brian Miller, an architect and urban planner who has been a leader in green design projects across the country, has just been named as Director of the GJA, and will guide BCCC through the newest chapter in their efforts to train students in emerging green technology and innovation.

The Academy is the result of Congressman Patrick Murphy’s and the Community College’s work bringing together businesses, academic institutions, and government players to provide students with the training they need to fill green collar jobs coming to Bucks County. In addition to BCCC, major academic partners include Bucks County Technical High School, Drexel University, and Delaware Valley College. Rep. Murphy has secured nearly $800,000 in funding for the establishment of the Academy.

The Bridge Business Center, located in a Pennsylvania Keystone Innovation Zone, will serve as the site of the Green Jobs Academy. The Center is already home to a number of companies working on green energy and sustainability projects. The Green Jobs Academy will play an integral role in attracting additional green energy companies to Bucks County. Last month, Y-Carbon, Inc., a promising renewable energy company, moved into the Center, citing the Academy as critical factor in its decision to move to Bucks County.

The Green Jobs Academy includes a variety of private industry partners in addition to academic partners, including Dow, Lockheed Martin, AE Polysilicon, Gamesa, PECO, Y-Carbon, Arkema, and Rhodia. The GJA provides both long and shorter-term training programs geared toward workers looking for new skill sets in the green and sustainability industries.

The following are several of the training programs taking place at BCCC this spring:

• Green Advantage® Commercial and Residential Training
• Lead Safety for Renovation, Repair & Painting
• Lean ‘n Green – Lean Six Sigma for Green Projects
• Photovoltaic Systems and Key Operating Components: Grid-Tied Inverters and Battery Inverter Training
• Renewable Energy – Solar – Is It For You?

“We’re so pleased that Brian Miller is joining our team, as he will help us build on the firm foundation of courses already being offered ” said Barbara Miller, Vice President of Continuing Education/Workforce Development and Public Safety at Bucks County Community College. “Congressman Murphy has worked tirelessly to bring green jobs to Bucks, and to ensure that our students are trained for these jobs with his leadership on the Green Jobs Academy.”

“I’m thrilled to see Bucks County Community College’s efforts moving the Green Jobs Academy forward to prepare the next generation of green workers,” said Rep. Patrick Murphy. “The Academy will prepare students to enter new, high-tech jobs, and will help us recruit good-paying jobs to Bucks County for years to come.”

Shortly after taking office, Rep. Murphy met with leaders in the renewable energy industry and learned that workforce development was an obstacle to the growth of green energy. To address this need, Rep. Murphy partnered with Bucks County Community College to create the Green Jobs Academy. Its primary goal will be ensuring that Bucks workers, particularly young people, can participate and compete in the renewable energy industry, creating jobs, protecting the environment, and lessening our dependence on foreign oil. The Green Jobs Academy will also provide shorter-term training programs geared toward incumbent workers looking for new skill sets. While some of these trainings already take place, the Academy will provide a centralized clearinghouse for these types of efforts in Bucks County.

For Immediate Release, January 14, 2010
Contact: Kate Hansen, (202) 225-4276