BRIGHT DAYS AHEAD
 

BEST Center Awarded National Science Foundation ATE Center Grant

BEST Center has been awarded a renewal grant to continue our mission of promoting better building performance through building technician education. We are thrilled to be able to expand on our collaborative work with our members and partners in order to strengthen the educational programs and produce a quality stream of well-trained, high-performance building operators. Read the press release.
 

Sporlan “Train the Trainer” Event – Apply by June 15

Sporlan will host another “Train the Trainer” event this summer at their headquarters in Washington, MO.  According to Bob Clark of College of DuPage, this event is one of the best technical trainings he has ever attended. Sporlan believes in education and they have made it very clear in their professional development opportunities. Email Bob Clark to apply.
 

Building Automation Workshop VI – June 22-24

Final planning is underway for the 6^th BAS workshop to be held at Georgia Piedmont Technical College, outside of Atlanta, GA. Attendees can expect insightful hands-on activities led by our Co-PIs. We look forward to seeing you there. Registration closed.
 

ACE Mentor and BEST Center Complete Pilot Collaboration

To kick-off our national partnership with ACE Mentor, BEST Center hosted the Oakland team on the Laney College campus this spring. ACE is a national afterschool program introducing high school students to architecture, construction, engineering and the skilled trades. The ultimate goal of the collaboration is to connect students across the U.S. with community college programs in design and construction as well as building performance, heating and air conditioning, and energy management. Read more.
  

Laney College First In Nation With Training Program To Support Energy Sustainability Goals

As California prepares to meet it’s 2020 Zero Net Energy (ZNE) goals, Laney College and a consortium of utility and industry partners are leading the state and nation in preparing a skilled workforce of High-Performance Building Operations Professionals™ (HPBOP) capable of enabling commercial buildings to produce as much energy as they consume.  Read More. 
 

Call for Photos

BEST Center would like to collect photos that can be made available to members for marketing their programs and courses. We are looking for diverse images of technicians and students working on BAS systems that can be used royalty-free and restriction-free. Email Pam Wallace with your photos. 

BEST Center Makes the Rounds

We have had various opportunities lately to share our work with industry audiences and beyond.

Peter Crabtree, Pamela Wallace & Chuck Frost (Laney College) will present on the “High-Performance Building Operations Professional National Training and Certification (HPBOP)” at the California Higher Education Sustainability Conference (CHESC) June 26-28, Santa Barbara, CA.

Larry Chang was a panelist at a session called “Qualified Professionals for the Home and Building Automation Industry: How Can Educational Providers Help?” on 4/27/17 at the Continental Automated Building Association (CABA) Forum on Intelligent Buildings 2017, Santa Clara, CA.

Peter Crabtree, Pamela Wallace & Hadley Hartshorn (Laney College) presented “Developing Industry Endorsed Curriculum: Designing Technician Education & Certification HPBOP” on 4/24/17 at the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) 97^thAnnual Convention, New Orleans, LA.

Larry Chang, Jon Zeh (Sacramento City College), & Bob Clark (College of DuPage) presented “Current Developments in HVAC Instructional Lab Strategies and Designs” on 3/28/17 at the 2017 National HVACR Educators and Trainers Conference, Orlando, FL.

Pamela Wallace presented “Powering Resilience: Bridging the Energy Skills Gap” on 1/26/17 at the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Workforce Development Institute, Newport Beach, CA.
 

“The good thing about science is that it’s true whether or not you believe in it.”