Orange Coast College offers new green classes

Seeing evidence of a surge in demand for what were referred to as “green-collar jobs” during the presidential election, Orange Coast College has decided to debut some new classes to capitalize on the trend.

For the first time, there will be courses on solar panel installation, sustainable architecture and energy-efficient water heaters at the school and more are in the workings, administrators say.

Many of the faculty members at OCC in departments like construction and architecture also work in industry, and they were the first ones to notice the emerging need for people trained in environmentally conscious design, according to Dean of Technology Programs Doug Benoit.

Their advice turned out to be prophetic. The photovoltaic system installation class, for instance, has almost filled up after only a couple weeks, and many prospective students haven’t even had a chance to enroll yet.

“It was something we knew was coming to a degree, but we weren’t ready for the degree that it has become popular. We were in the right place at the right time,” Benoit said.