Senator Boxer Visits the Kern County Green Jobs Training Program   

Tuesday, August 31, 2010  

Dear Friend:

Last week I traveled to Bakersfield to meet with Kern County residents who are training for good jobs in the new clean-energy economy.

Working with key partners in industry, the Kern Community College District (KCCD) has developed an innovative Green Jobs Training Program to train workers in the growing wind and solar industries. 

Thanks to more than $3 million in federal investments from the Recovery Act, KCCD is now expanding its Green Jobs Program.  Wind and solar companies have collaborated on this curriculum, so trainees get the mechanical, electrical, maintenance and operational know-how they will need to work for these utility companies.

Thirty trainees finished the first portion of their free training last month.  Over the three-year span of the Recovery Act investment, more than 700 people are expected to receive job training for the wind, solar and utility industries.  KCCD is also working with the county economic development corporation to attract new wind and solar ventures here in Kern County.

The Green Jobs Training Program is giving Kern County residents the skills they need to get good jobs in growing industries.  It is a great example of how federal investments can help train Californians for new clean-energy jobs and lay the foundation for a more prosperous future.

Sincerely,

U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer