Nunez Community College in Chalmette has been awarded $321,772 in grant funds from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to fund 20 scholarships in the college’s new Wind Energy Technology Program.
The grant is one of four awarded by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine’s Gulf Research Program (GRP) totaling $1.1 million.
According to a press release from Nationalacademies.org, the four projects “will support young people ages 16-25 in acquiring the skills, knowledge, and credentials necessary to enter careers in the future energy workforce.”
The Wind Energy Technology program at Nunez, which will launch with the Fall 2024 semester in August, creates a pathway for students to earn an associate of applied science degree in wind energy technology that is recognized and certified by the Global Wind Organisation (GWO). Graduates will be prepared for immediate employment as a wind turbine technician or transfer to an institution of higher learning for additional studies. Students in Nunez’s Wind Energy Technology program, a partnership with Energy Innovation of Norway, may also earn a career and technical certificate in offshore safety and survival, and a technical diploma in wind turbine mechanics and maintenance.
The GRP scholarships for Nunez’s Wind program will support the first cohort of 20 students. The remaining GRP awards include $160,000 for the line worker program at Northwest Louisiana Technical Community College, $471,874 for the Texas Research Alliance for Clean Energy at Texas A&M University, and $149,470 for Solar and Electrical Concepts Apprenticeship at Unity In the Family Ministry Inc., in Pensacola, Fla.
