March 25, 2002

St. Cloud Technical College – Water Environment Technologies Program

UPDATE

I figure it is about time I got around to this.  I know there are a lot of questions out there as to the status of the Water Environment Technologies Program at SCTC.  Bill Spain and myself have been very busy lately trying to inform as many people as possible as to the status of the program, but due to the day-to-day changes we have been experiencing as of late, it has been hard to be consistent and accurate at the same time.  For those of you who are wondering what I am talking about, last December, the SCTC administration decided to close down ½ of the WETT program, our January (spring) start.  The decision was based on previous low program number of students and the current state budget mess we are dealing with.  We, with the help of many fantastic operators and professional organizations, pursued the possibility of starting a metro section of our program, proposed to be held at the Eden Prairie Water facility and the Blue Lake wastewater facility in Shakopee.  After a few quick meetings and industry surveys, we soon had the administration at SCTC encouraging us to explore the possibility of starting a metro section.  Too make a very long story short, we have been very successful and are currently taking applications for the start of the metro extension program to begin August 19, 2002.  With very little marketing and recruiting we are receiving 5 – 10 calls per week and expect to fill the metro section in record time.  Just to be VERY CLEAR, we are continuing to run our program at SCTC with the fall start beginning the same date as the metro start.  Both sections will encompass the full year requirement of 38 credits and both sections will be offered during the day.  Very little of the program will change with the exception of the location the course work is offered.   During all the activity, over the past 3 months, involving setting up the metro section and marketing and recruiting - a very pleasant problem has arrived.  We are now overbooked at the SCTC location for our fall start and for the first time in at least the past 5 years we now have had to put applicants on a waiting list.  I guess in all the commotion in our program and assistance from you operators out there, the word has gotten out that there are more jobs than qualified people to fill them.  We are not sure how we will handle this sudden request for enrollment into our program, but Bill and I would like to see the SCTC program back to where we were with two starts per year in the college, one in fall and one in spring.  If what is happening with the metro program is any indication of what we can expect to experience in the future at that location, there is no telling where we will go with the program.  So, to sum this all up…we will be starting two sections of the Water Environment Technologies Program this fall, one at SCTC and one at the metro area locations.  I will be working out of the metro location in the fall and likely the summer sessions and Bill will work out of the metro section during the spring session.  While I am at the metro section Bill will be at SCTC and vice-versa.  Of course we are looking at other possibilities at the metro location such as offering introductory course at night and possibly some workforce training during the afternoons and evenings.  We still have a long ways to go, but it is very encouraging to see the progress we have made in getting the metro program up and running.  I will try to update you again as we progress with our new venture through the summer.  Bill and I have a busy summer ahead of us, but we look forward to the excitement this new project brings with it.  If you know of anyone who may be interested in either location of our program, have him or her call us at 320-654-5952.  Tell them not to wait too long as I suspect the section in the metro location will be full before long and the SCTC section is already overfull.  We will be taking applications in the early fall semester for next year (2003) for both locations.  I would like to thank everyone for their wonderful assistance over the past 3 – 4 months with our program development; we appreciate all that you have done for us and the overwhelming support we received during our efforts to save our program.  We will continue to do our best to provide well-trained dedicated operators to serve the needs of our industry and your communities.  Again, Thank You for all your efforts.

Keith Redmond, Instructor

St. Cloud Technical College

Water Environment Technologies Program