September 16, 2024  

Media Contacts:   
Greg Jourdan, ESRT faculty, 509-682-6637, gjourdan@wvc.edu    
Dr. Jennifer Korfiatis, interim public information officer, 509-682-6650, jkorfiatis@wvc.edu   

Wenatchee Valley College has been awarded a $349,995 Advanced Technological Education grant from the National Science Foundation to support a Critical Environments for Data Center Operations project.  

“This three-year grant, led by WVC’s Environmental Systems and Refrigeration Technology program, aims to equip students with the technical skills, competencies, and hands-on experience required for successful employment in the data center industry,” said Greg Jourdan, WVC ESRT professor and principal investigator for the project.  

“Projections show that the data center industry will grow 10% per year through 2030, with global spending on the construction of new facilities approaching $49 billion,” Jourdan said. “The need for data centers is fueling an unparalleled demand for a skilled technically adaptable workforce capable of operating and maintaining these highly technical facilities.”    

Despite the growth of data centers, many owners and operators have had difficulty hiring experienced HVAC professionals, a problem compounded by the number of professionals expected to retire. The CEDCO project is designed to help address this skilled labor shortage by using industry guidance to modify the existing ESRT program so that students will have the skills needed for successful data center employment.   

In addition to curriculum updates, the CEDCO project will focus on three key objectives:  recruiting students from underrepresented and rural populations, developing K-12 educational pathways into CEDCO, and expanding and training current full- and part-time faculty in data center facilities and related topics. The project will also develop partnerships with local employers to provide students with hands-on experience and internship opportunities, enhancing their readiness for the workforce.  

Jourdan and Yuritzi Lozano, former dean of professional technical programs at WVC, developed the grant proposal with mentoring and technical support from Mentor-Connect, an NSF ATE initiative. This year-long program provides peer mentoring and technical resources to help two-year college faculty write competitive grant proposals.  

The ATE program focuses on the education of technicians who work in high-tech fields that drive the nation’s economy. Because two-year community and technical colleges are the leading sources of technician education in the U.S., faculty from these higher education institutions have had leadership roles in most ATE projects since the program began in 1993.  

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Wenatchee Valley College enriches North Central Washington by serving educational and cultural needs of communities and residents throughout the service area. The college is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion for all students and employees and provides high-quality transfer, liberal arts, professional/technical, basic skills and continuing education for students of diverse ethnic and economic backgrounds. Visit our website, wvc.edu.  

Wenatchee Valley College is committed to a policy of equal opportunity in employment and student enrollment. All programs are free from discrimination and harassment against any person because of race, creed, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a service animal by a person with a disability, age, parental status or families with children, marital status, religion, genetic information, honorably discharged veteran or military status or any other prohibited basis per RCW 49.60.030, 040 and other federal and state laws and regulations, or participation in the complaint process. The following persons have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies and Title IX compliance for both the Wenatchee and Omak campuses:  

To report discrimination or harassment: Title IX Coordinator, Mish ee twie 1321A, (509) 682-6716, title9@wvc.edu.  

To request disability accommodations: Student Access Manager, Wenatchi Hall 2133, (509) 682-6854, TTY/TTD: dial 711, sas@wvc.edu.