Tech talk
Cheryl Schweizer/Columbia Basin Herald Local students check out the Big Bend Community College Engineering Club during BBCC Engineering Night Thursday.
Cheryl Schweizer/Columbia Basin Herald Joe Law (left) of the University of Idaho talks about the work the university is doing with NASA with (from left) Jesus Lopez and Blake Driesen, both of Ephrata, and Ivan Dubineti of Moses Lake. Law was in Moses Lake to talk to students on Engineering Night at Big Bend Community College.
MOSES LAKE — Opportunities for engineers in Grant County, engineering education, training and career advancement were among the topics of discussion at Engineering Night at Big Bend Community College Thursday.
Engineering Night featured speakers from REC Silicon, Grant County PUD, Genie and the Vantage data center in Quincy. Representatives of the University of Idaho, Seattle University, Washington State University and WSU’s campus in Tri-Cities set up information booths highlighting their engineering and STEM programs. Big Bend officials had information on the college’s unmanned aerial vehicle program, and the BBCC Engineering Club showed off some of their projects.
Engineering Night has two goals, said Sarah Adams, math specialist with the college’s STEM project. One is to acquaint students with some of the educational opportunities in the engineering field, both at BBCC and through the transfer degree program. “Part of their path to a strong future,” she said. The second is to show students some of the opportunities for a career in Grant County. Students don’t always know there are jobs in the county in their chosen fields, she said.
Engineering Night was open to anybody, BBCC student or not, interested in an engineering career. Attendees quizzed the engineers about the best way to get into the field, in Grant County or elsewhere. They asked about local jobs and the job market, about the advantages of internships and continuing education.
Gareth Hoey, representing Genie, characterized his company’s job market as “cyclical. It’s difficult to say what the future holds,” he said. Both Genie and REC have experienced layoffs recently. Sharon Palmerton of REC said that company is experiencing some turbulent times, including ongoing trade controversies with China. But the company has been here since the 1980s and faced challenges before, “and over and over again, we’ve managed to pull through.”
Data centers were attracted to Grant County due to the relatively low cost of operation, said Mark Johnson of the Vantage data center. That advantage is disappearing as other states provide tax breaks and work to lower energy costs, he added, but the Columbia Basin still is an attractive place for a data center.
Industry representatives said internships are available through their businesses, although sometimes they depend on the broader job market. Sometimes companies hire people that have interned for them, but that’s not a guarantee, they said.
Adams asked about qualifications for jobs in engineering. Barb Shimek of REC said students should have a degree in their field of specialization. Some companies do require advanced degrees or continuing education, the panelists said. Companies will offer training to qualified candidates, said Sergue Iapryntsev of REC.
When asked what brought him to BBCC on a chilly Thursday night, Joe Law said “great students.” Law is a dean of undergraduates at the University of Idaho. “I’m here to recruit.”
Community college transferees already have adjusted to the facts of higher education and are less likely to drop out, he said. “We’re excited to have them,” he added.
Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at education@columbiabasinherald.com.