“College of the Rockies recognizes how dramatically and quickly the workplace and job markets are changing,” said recruitment officer Hugh Moore. “We want to help people in our community make choices that are relevant in today’s economy and assist them in making educational choices that support them for employment purposes or to expand their personal growth.

“Many of our mature students are individuals whose lives have been affected by a wide variety of circumstances that have interrupted their schooling. We want to assist those people in realizing their dreams and let them know the college is very supportive of their goals and ambitions.

“This is totally a no pressure event. We just want folks to come and have a coffee, chat with current adult students, or our education advisors or financial aid officer and explore their options. It’s never too late to return to school.”

Returning to Learning takes place on Tuesday, May 8 from 4 to 6 p.m. in the cafeteria of the Cranbrook campus.

For more information contact Hugh Moore at 250-489-2751 ext. 3329.

The students first wrote a theory exam consisting of safety questions, then built a structure from blueprints—including layout, cutting, fabrication and welding. They were judged by Troy Ross from Fab-Rite Services Ltd., Ken McKay, Tim Ross and Kim Buchan from College of the Rockies. Generous prizes were donated by many local businesses.

 

Robert Macrae is an instructor of integrated environmental planning technology at Selkirk College. He has been a proponent of the advanced certificate in renewable energy technology that the Castlegar campus will be offering in May of 2013.

Sustainable technologies are the way of the future, according to Macrae. Traditional energy production technologies are becoming expensive as we exhaust the resources that were easily accessible in the past.

“Renewable energy technologies offer a better economic return in investment than conventional energy technologies. That’s the big change,” said Macrae. “Fifty years ago you could go to Saudi Arabia, put a pipe in the ground and bring up lovely crude oil by just going down a few hundred metres. Now we’re going up to Alaska, to the bottom of the gulf of Mexico, offshore in the Atlantic or we’re trying to convert bitumen into gasoline. As developing conventional oil has become more expensive, (the cost of developing) renewable energy technologies has gone way down.”

One important consideration in sustainable technology is the concept of energy conservation. This is simply the process of discovering if energy, regardless of its source, can be used more efficiently. Passive house design is an up-and-coming concept. If a building is designed properly, said Macrae, it doesn’t require a heating system. Many factors come into play—such as insulation for thermally efficient walls, the placement of windows and heat recovery systems that can be used, for example, in a shower drain. Macrae said that these are simple initiatives that are inexpensive and fairly efficient.

Systems that create energy may be even more intriguing to potential students. These can be categorized into systems that generate electricity, such as solar panels, and those that simply move heat around, such as geothermal systems.

Sustainable technology can work with whichever resources are already available in the area. Macrae pointed out that the Kootenays don’t have a lot of potential in technologies such as wind-generated electricity because of our mountains. However, the Kootenays have possibly utilized micro hydro systems, through flowing water sources, more than anywhere else in Canada.

As a prerequisite, the upcoming program requires that students have already completed two years in technology or environmental science studies. This is so the six-week program will be able to focus directly on a wide range of relevant sustainable energy technologies.

The Selkirk College has secured funding through FortisBC, which will primarily be used to purchase energy conservation technologies. Students will only be spending about half their time in the classroom with the remainder of the program being used for lab work and practical hands-on experience.

Each student will build a small shed using four different wall systems and practice some of the basics of residential wiring. They will learn to do heat loss calculations, and will decide whether they want to integrate a wind energy system, or solar thermal panels. Additionally, the class will experiment with a small geothermal system and micro hydro systems. They will also perform a lab exercise where they will turn algae into biodiesel.

Whether it’s maximizing energy conservation, or learning about progressive technologies, sustainable energy is increasingly relevant in today's world. One only needs to look at building trends and the growing cost of traditional energy to realize that learning about green technology is the way to move forward.

Grade eight students from Fernie Secondary School (FSS) will “paint the town for fish” this May, an outcome of their participation in Columbia Basin Trust’s (CBT’s) Know Your Watershed program.

Tessa Holmes, class spokesperson, recently introduced the project to Fernie City Council.

“We want to paint the storm drains around Fernie to remind residents that only rain should go down them,” Holmes said. “Pollution off streets, driveways and homes is carried in storm water, which goes directly into the Elk River and can harm fish.”

CBT has provided $1,000 to support the two classes participating in the project.

“We’re pleased to see youth actively working on a project about water,” said Kindy Gosal, CBT director, Water and Environment. “Congratulations to the students, their teacher and the environmental educators for initiating this project in Fernie.”

“Class posters will be used for public education at the school and throughout the community during April and May,” said Mike Tomney, FSS grade eight science teacher.

Know Your Watershed is a CBT water stewardship education program aimed at grade eight science classes. This hands-on education initiative helps students understand where their water comes from, how it is used and where their water goes after it is used.

The students are looking for adult volunteers interested in supervising painting teams on the blitz in May when students are painting the town for fish. If you can help, please contact Lee-Anne Walker, Know Your Watershed environmental educator, at 250-423-3322 or knowyourwatershed@gmail.com.

Continuing Education co-ordinator Danette Polzin said, “Our online business courses keep expanding and it seems we have something new to offer in every guide. These include advanced website strategies, business coaching certificate, business research certificate, media buying strategies, recruiting and retaining Gen X and Gen Y, and a supervisory and leadership certificate. We also continue to offer the popular social media and e-marketing courses. Most of these are available online and fit an entrepreneur’s busy schedule.”

More cooking classes with Chef Jaime Gordon are scheduled, for both Cranbrook and Kimberley, such as making sushi and Vietnamese, Greek and Mexican cuisine. Chef Steven Lechmann has joined the team in Cranbrook and is offering barbecue techniques and cooking for bachelors. The Cranbrook cooking classes have a unique feature as they are offered in the professional cook training classroom.

Summer camps and building workshops are back at Kimberley. A variety of kids camps are available for all interests and ages and the ever-popular Introduction to Timber Framing and Straw Bale Building programs start in July. New to Kimberley is a five-day Introduction to Western Horsemanship and Horse Safety class. Discover the art and science of working with horses.

Not all classes take place in a classroom. Adventures in Geocaching gets you outside looking for caches. Consider it a high-tech, treasure hunting game using GPS-enabled devices. It’s fun, active and the whole family can get involved.

A growing area of interest to new parents is baby sign language. Experienced sign language instructor Mary Hennig teaches parents how to sign to their baby. Grandparents are welcome too.

“We also offer regular, ongoing industry certification courses including WorkSafeBC, Canadian Red Cross and St. John Ambulance first aid and FoodSafe,” Polzin added, “Along with fun classes like acrylic painting and Zentangle."

Be sure to check out our new guide when it arrives in your mail box or go to: www.cotr.bc.ca/ConEd