Do
you require assistance with energy education curriculum
design and train the trainer programs?
Technical Curriculum
for the Energy Industry
Deborah Laurel
has more than 12 years of experience designing
specialized energy educational programs and training
the trainers who provide energy education on a
local, regional and national level.
In collaboration
with subject matter experts, Deborah Laurel designed
the curriculum, created the trainer manuals and
job aids, and trained the trainers for the following
programs:
National Compressed
Air Challenge
Compressed Air Challenge Fundamentals
Compressed Air Challenge Advanced Training
The fact that the
National Compressed Air Challenge is one of the
highest rated training programs for the U.S. Department
of Energy has also been attributed to Deborah
Laurel's curriculum design and train-the trainer
expertise:
In May 2004,
the US Department of Energy and Xenergy Inc.
completed a rigorous assessment of the actual
impact of the CAC Fundamentals and Advanced
technical training programs. Extensive interviews
of 200 industrial end-users and compressed air
professionals confirmed clear energy efficiency,
reliability and commercial benefits of both
the Fundamentals and Advanced CAC workshops.
Key
findings of the USDOE Evaluation include the following:
- Training attendees
found the CAC sessions to be both useful
and of high quality.
High percentages of both end-users and compressed
air professionals reported a strong positive
impression of the training sessions. According
to the study, the CAC training has been
very effective in providing high quality
technical information to plant managers
and technical staff as well as by targeted
constituencies on the supply side of the
market, which consists of compressed air
system equipment distributors and consulting
engineers. Moreover, the training sessions
were positively rated by the substantial
number of government officials, engineering
faculty, and utility energy efficiency program
operators who attended the CAC trainings.
- A very high portion
of end-users reported using materials directly
from the training in making efficiency improvements
to their compressed air systems
- End-users who
implemented compressed air system efficiency
measures achieved high levels of energy
savings.
- The CAC training
is highly cost-effective for businesses
and attendees. At current national industrial
electricity rates, the average value of
savings achieved by program participants
who implemented measures was $7,428. With
a typical "Fundamentals" tuition of $299,
this results in a simple payback of less
than a month.
- CAC Training
materials are highly useful to compressed
air professionals. The majority (85%)
of vendor participants have used CAC training
workshop materials or information when they
evaluate customer compressed air systems.
Among this group, 18% of respondents used
them in 'all' evaluations, and 40% used
them in 'many' evaluations. A similarly
high percentage of vendors (64%) claimed
that they have used the CAC workshop materials
in diagnosing their customers' compressed
air system operating problems."
Energy
Center of Wisconsin and Focus on
Energy
- Ventilation Basics
- Drainage Basics
- Practical Energy Management
- Integrating High Performance
According to Marge
Anderson, Associate Director of the Energy
Center of Wisconsin, Deborah Laurel's "curriculum
design and master training skills helped the Energy
Center of Wisconsin win the 1998 and 2002 Awards
of Excellence in Education from the American Institute
of Architects, as well as the 2000 Exemplar Award
from the International Association of Continuing
Education and Training."
Joseph P. Nagan,
Home Building Technology Services said this about
Deborah's curriculum design expertise:
I have recently
worked with Laurel and Associates, Ltd. on the
development and implementation of a full day,
eight hour training course. As Technical Director
for the Wisconsin ENERGY STAR Homes program,
I am involved in the development of several
training events.
Over the years
we have realized through follow up evaluations
that the 'training as usual' did not appear
to change practices in the field. We felt that
the limited time we have with the building industry
had to be reevaluated in an effort to provide
a better 'learning experience.'
This is where
we decided to contact Deb Laurel at Laurel and Associates, Ltd. , Madison. Working with the Energy
Center of Wisconsin as the coordinator for our
training series, we met with Deb Laurel. After
doing the 'training as usual' for several years
I realized after the first 20 minutes or so,
that Deb Laurel was the right person to help
us coordinate all the technical resources we
had and put them into a curriculum that would
provide a real learning experience.
For years
we had assumed that lecturing to a group was
the correct way to learning. Soon into our work
with Deb Laurel we could see the major flaws
with that assumption. She went to work immediately
in establishing an outline for collecting the
information we wanted taught, and designed a
learning experience through interaction and
lecture. This process was valuable for me as
a trainer as well, as it reminded me of the
importance of information being provided in
a way that motivates people to action. After
all, isn't this what training is all about?
Having done
over eight sessions now with the curriculum
that Laurel and Associates helped us develop,
I can tell you Deb Laurel's expertise and experience
in training delivered a true learning experience.
The evaluations for this training series are
a testament to the value of her service. Even
seasoned trades people commented to me that
they learned more in eight hours than they have
from twenty years of field experience. These
comments are common after our sessions and pretty
much speak for themselves.
Wisconsin Energy
Conservation Corporation
- 8-day Wisconsin Energy
Star Homes Training Consultant training
In collaboration
with Ronald Wroblewski, PE, of Productive Energy
Solutions, LLC, Deborah designed the curriculum,
participant materials, facilitator guides, job
aids, and PowerPoint audiovisuals for the following
programs:
U.S. Department
of Energy
Fan System Assessment Training
Fan System Qualified Specialist Training
Arcelor Mittal
Energy Awareness Program
Purdue University
Steel: An Energy-Intensive Business
Portland General
Electric
Pump System Energy Efficiency
Fan System Energy Efficiency
For two years,
she worked with Southern California Edison
to provide train-the-trainer programs and
to audit and recommend revisions to their key
training programs in their Customer Technology
Application Center and Agricultural Technology
Application Center to incorporate adult learning
principles to ensure a quality learning experience
for their customers.
Most recently,
Deborah designed and delivered a two-day program
on Training Analysis and Design for Midwest
ISO (Independent System Operators) and Presentation
and Facilitation Techniques for Pump Systems
Matter.
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