Cincinnati State to Launch Center of Sustainability Excellence

Cincinnati State Technical and Community College is partnering with the National Sustainability Coalition and the International Sustainability Institute of Applied Sciences to launch an initiative designed to cement its standing as a regional leader in sustainability education.

Cincinnati State President Dr. O’Dell M. Owens today announced the establishment of a “Center of Sustainability Excellence.”

The program will begin with an 8-hour online course that provides an in-depth overview of sustainability concepts and the business case for sustainable development. Those who complete the prerequisite e-course earn a certificate in addition to one credit hour and qualify to take an entire sustainability program consisting of seven additional accredited courses being offered this summer and fall at Cincinnati State’s Workforce Development Center in Evendale.

“The Sustainability Center will serve as a regional resource to the labor market by offering sustainability education that is sensitive to real-life experience and relevant to what people are doing in the workplace,” Dr. Owens said. “With the concept of sustainability firmly imbedded into our lives and the immediate future of our society, now is the time to apply ecological knowledge to decision making at every level.”

According to Dr. Dennis Ulrich, Executive Director of the Workforce Development Center, the new offerings will play a pivotal role in linking the application of sustainability with workforce development curriculum. “Cincinnati State already has one of the strongest energy management and environmental technologies programs in the region,” Ulrich said. “The Center of Sustainability Excellence will educate and supply an ever demanding 21st Century workforce that will make better environmental decisions in jobs and careers requiring sustainable applications and solutions.”

The Center’s curriculum will focus primarily on the technical and scientific application of sustainability. Courses were developed by a team of professionals led by Dr. Calvin Green, an environmental engineer and scientist who recently retired from The Procter & Gamble Co. Dr. Green, who currently serves as president of the International Sustainability Institute of Applied Sciences, said the Center of Sustainability Excellence will become a leader in providing advice and training to a variety of industries and organizations throughout North America.

“Companies want to know how to improve technical job performance and operational efficiencies through the application of sustainability,” Dr. Green said.

There are eight accredited courses in the Center’s Sustainability Program that will be available in 2011:

• Introduction to Environmental and Social Management
• Certified Sustainability Manager
• Sustainability Auditing Techniques
• Sustainability Solutions to Technical Issues
• Energy RRR (Reduction, Recycle, Reuse)
• Sustainable Supply Chain
• Sustainability Program Management Techniques
• Sustainable Solutions to Economics & Community Development

The Workforce Development Center in Evendale also offers traditional-style green energy courses (including one that prepares students to test for certification as photo-voltaic system installers), as well as customized assistance to businesses trying to improve the energy efficiency of their buildings and operating systems.

Courses at the WDC’s Center of Sustainability Excellence are competitively priced and cost-effective, with a direct impact on sustainable development, productivity, performance, and efficiency. In many cases, financial assistance may be available. For employees with tuition reimbursement benefits, training costs may be paid in full or in part.

ABOUT CINCINNATI STATE:

Cincinnati State offers more than 75 associate degree and 40 certificate programs in business technologies, health and public safety, engineering technologies, humanities and sciences and information technologies. About 11,175 students were enrolled in the 2010 Winter Term. Cincinnati State has the largest cooperative education program among two-year colleges in the United States.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY COALITION:

The NSC is a nonprofit initiative on a mission to improve the operating efficiencies of small and diverse businesses. Organized as part of Cybervillage, USA Inc., a 501(c) (3) organization headquartered in Cincinnati, the NSC operates under the direction of an eleven-member Executive Committee comprised of well-known business professionals and sustainability experts. Icy L. Williams, former Corporate Supplier/Diversity leader at The Procter & Gamble Co., serves as president of the initiative. For further information, please visit www.nscoalition.com.

ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY INSTITUTE:

The International Sustainability Institute of Applied Sciences (ISIAS) is an outgrowth of the National Sustainability Coalition and is designed to bring world-class sustainability curriculum to community and technical colleges through Centers of Sustainability Excellence. Dr. Calvin L. Green, Jr., an environmental engineer and scientist, led the development of the curriculum with the intent to integrate sustainability into the applied sciences and technology curriculum to meet 21st century labor market needs. Dr. Green spent 25 years with The Procter & Gamble Co., and has extensive expertise in wastewater treatment and pretreatment technologies, hygiene engineering, dust control and business science.

CONTACTS
Dr. Dennis Ulrich, Executive Director
Workforce Development Center
513-569-1414 dennis.ulrich@cincinnatistate.edu

Icy L. Williams, President
National Sustainability Coalition
513-242-1066 or 513-335-1978 icywilliams@nscoalition.com