Comment On Article About The Author More Articles By This Author Interested in this topic? Need more information? Energy Central has created a complete information service focused only on Mobile Workforce Management. There is no better way to stay informed. Get more information on Mobile Workforce Management today!

The need for a resourceful workforce is a very real issue facing the energy industry. We lament that our colleges and universities aren't producing enough science, technology, energy and math (STEM) graduates. Just as critical, too few people coming out of high schools, community colleges, and technical schools possess the strong math, science and analytical skills key to being successful skilled technicians and technical support professionals.

So, the real question is this: Do we sit back and wait for the system to deliver the talent we need, or do we recognize that this is a critical part of our staffing and workforce development investment and help develop the skilled workforce we need for the future?

Gulf Power, a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Company, has sharpened its focus to bring much-needed additional resources to hands-on, interactive programs that excite students about science, technology, engineering, math and energy. Our holistic approach includes awareness and preparedness for energy and other STEM-oriented careers at all educational levels. It ensures that we -- and our regional economy -- will have deep talent pipelines for the high-wage occupations our region strives to attract and retain.

Awareness begins at the elementary school level through the I LOVE Science program coordinated through the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition. As part of this program, which was cofounded by Gulf Power, each month company employees engage fifth-grade students in science activities that help boost interest in this area at a time that, as research shows, interest in science may begin to wane.

To keep their interest, students must be engaged in hands-on, project-based learning. Our strong sponsorship of the BEST robotics program and of FIRST robotics is founded in this belief. We are also offering our first middle school summer camp -- Get into Energy! -- at the University of West Florida this summer. How exciting to see gymnasiums filled to capacity with cheering students and cheerleaders -- all for an academic and technical competition. These highly competitive, arena sports-like programs give teams of students from middle and high schools an opportunity to learn engineering design, construction, communications and teamwork -- all while having fun.

Our talent development programs are focused at the high school level and are anchored by a Gulf Power Academy. Implemented in 2001 at the West Florida High School of Advanced Technology in Pensacola, the academy raises awareness of and interest in Gulf Power and electric utility careers and prepares students for employment following high school or college graduation. This program helps students understand the relevance of their academic courses to the real world of work. Based on the National Center for Construction Education & Research Core and Electrical Curriculum, the program features guest instructors from Gulf Power and multiple field trips to our facilities, and boasts the same academic rigor as top preparatory schools while adding to the mix a real laboratory and hands-on learning component.

Also included is a mentoring program that pairs a student interested in a particular field of interest with an appropriate Gulf Power employee through graduation and beyond. The program culminates in the senior year with ACE, Advanced Career Experience, wherein students are given the opportunity to actually train and work at a Gulf Power facility. Successful students graduate from the Gulf Power Academy with their high school diploma, 15 hours of college credit, test-qualified on industry pre-employment tests, and with an NCCER credential valued by the electric utility sector.

Approximately 50 percent of these graduates go straight to college full time, while others land positions at Gulf Power and take advantage of tuition reimbursement programs to continue their education while working as line or power plant technicians.

Raising educators' understanding about energy careers is also imperative. Through programs such as Educators-in-the-Workplace, guidance counselors and academic teachers become advocates for careers and educational programs that prepare students for the energy field. For example, through the daylong Math in Energy program launched in 2009, high school and college math instructors learn how math is utilized in energy careers, enabling them to teach math lessons in the context of our industry.

By implementing these career awareness and talent development programs, we have become an advocate for expanding students' options for rigorous career and technical education that is aligned with industry standards. As we cannot do this alone, Southern Company and Gulf Power have played a leadership role in creating the Center for Energy Workforce Development, the Florida Energy Workforce Consortium and other state energy workforce consortia in the region.

These collaborative efforts between the energy industry, education, and workforce boards give us an opportunity to partner to accelerate the implementation of energy career awareness and talent development programs -- all without reinventing the wheel. No longer can business and industry be partners in education through only financial contributions. The time has come for us all to be actively engaged in developing education policy, programs and curricula that prepare students to become the talented individuals who drive our regional economies. Our future depends on it.

Subscribe to EnergyBiz magazine today.
EnergyBiz magazine is the thought-leading, award-winning publication of the emerging power industry. This article originally appeared in the July/August 2009 issue.