Regarding NYSERDA, citing Wikipedia:
"The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) is a public benefit corporation that was created by the New York State Legislature in 1975. The purpose of the NYSERDA is to provide funding for the research of energy development."
NYSERDA was mentioned frequently for its regulations as well as its incentive programs for renewable energy practicioners in the state of New York.
So, a few months ago I had read about New York state and its progressive (and consistent, throughout the next few decades) implementation of energy programs after the first energy crisis in the 70's. I also read that New York State Schools all offered courses (for reasonable costs) in renewable energy training. So I signed up, and last week headed 4 hours west to the foot of the Catskills to learn about solar energy.
The course itself was very rewarding. I've never learned so much in 4 full days of class (9-5), and never thought I'd return to some skills that were long locked away in the mind after completing High School chemistry and trigonometry. But it all made so much sense, from p-n junctions and valence electrons to co-tangents and reciprocal formulas. The course was very well taught, as our instruction was led by Dr. Gay Canough from ETM solar, a brilliant woman with former NASA experience under her belt. In the early 90's she began her own solar installation company in upstate NY, and now her company has about 12 full time employees, from what I can recall.
Our classroom experience then, was lead by real figures in this emerging field, with great insight and ability to communicate on the topic from years of experience. Multiple instructors were rotated into the classroom on different days, many from ETM solar, and we recieved teaching from the VP, the general manager of installations, and even a utility engineer from Hudson Valley. We even conducted a hands on installation and rigging of a solar array in the parking lot of the ed building, which turned conversation and calculation into a real and tangible reality.
What was perhaps one of the most rewarding dimensions of my short trip and class experience was meeting another recent college graduate coming from roughly the same path as myself. Most of the men in the class of 25-30 students were between the ages of 30-50 (average age probably being 35-40). However, my friend Mike, whom I met in class, was a '07 graduate of UC Davis in California. After moving to Arlington, VA so that his fiance (and now wife) could attend George Washington, and after a brief stint with ING, which he left of his own will to pursue something more meaningful, Mike set his sights on solar energy. And from Virginia he made the trip to New York, spending the week and taking the same crash course on solar energy and installations. In talking over lunch and dinner, it became clear that we were both there in New York for the same reason -- this was really one of the few places in the country, or the East Coast at least, that you could recieve this type of training.
To summarize, the course material and experience was great, and I increased my knowledge of solar energy tenfold, to say the least. The greatest disadvantage I had was my limited and basic understanding of electricity and circuits, but in a sense I was exposed to what I need to know and learn in order to get involved with solar energy. It was a great experience and I am excited to keep educating myself, review my course materials, and take the NABCEP Photovoltaic Entry Level Exam in November and attempt to gain certification as a knowledgeable and learned installer of PV.
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