WASHINGTON, April 7, 2016 - The Energy Department’s SunShot
Initiative has a Solar
Ready Vets program that prepares veterans to enter the solar energy
industry, training them for careers as solar photovoltaic (PV) system
installers, sales representatives, system inspectors and other solar-related
occupations. Employment in the U.S. solar industry increased 123 percent over
the past five years, and veterans are strong candidates to fill these positions
because they are disciplined, motivated and technically savvy, says the
Department of Energy (DOE).
The Solar Ready Vets program trains active military
personnel who are in “transitioning military” status, within a few months of
leaving military service and becoming a veteran.
Recently, Deputy Secretary of Energy Liz Sherwood-Randall
and Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of Energy Katie Clarkin traveled
to Hill Air Force Base in Utah to attend a graduation ceremony for a class of
18 participants in the program.
When President Barack Obama visited Hill, he challenged DOE
to expand the Solar Ready Vets program to 10 military installations across the
nation, says Clarkin. The DOE is on track to meet that goal next month and
all four armed service branches will be represented. To date, approximately
200 students have graduated at five bases.
Since the solar industry is outpacing growth in the rest of
the economy, DOE is helping those who served our country find a new and
rewarding career in this fast-growing, dynamic field, says Clarkin.
Clarkin says that new careers in a clean energy economy are
not just promising job opportunities, but also providing veterans with a
pathway for continued service, training them to combat another threat to the nation,
climate change.
The Solar Vets program allows transitioning service members to
gain skills for “a new and vital mission,” Clarkin says, and employers in the
solar industry benefit from a talent pool that is qualified, trained and
committed to the core values of “mission first and team before self.” Clarkin
says that this is why some of the largest solar companies in the U.S. have
agreed to interview everyone who completes the Solar Ready Vets program.
“The best way to thank our veterans for their service is to
help provide a pathway to meaningful employment once they transition to
civilian status. Though we can never repay our veterans for the sacrifices they
make to keep us safe, we can begin by connecting them with opportunities to
continue to do what they do best — advance the security and prosperity of the
American people through the work they do every day,” says Clarkin.
Solar Ready Vets is supported by the Department of Defense’s
SkillBridge initiative, which
allows exiting military personnel to pursue civilian job training, employment
skills training, apprenticeships and internships up to six months prior to
their separation.
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