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Clinton County Natural Gas Task Force Sponsors Career Fair, Community Meeting May 5
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The Clinton County Natural Gas Task Force is sponsoring a community meeting and career fair on May 5 at Keystone Central School District's Career and Technology Center in Lock Haven, PA. Also on hand that day will be the Mobile Energy Education Training Unit (MEET-U) and again on May 7 at the Lycoming Fair Grounds.
The natural gas industry has created many opportunities and challenges not only on a local level, but has also received both statewide and national attention. As we struggle to understand the complexity and enormity of the many issues related to the industry, the best way for every citizen to make informed decisions is through education of the facts.
In an ongoing effort to further inform local citizens, the public education sub-committee of the Clinton County Natural Gas Task Force has been publishing articles from leading authorities on numerous topics, coordinating public outreach and providing access to its members for various needs.
In conjunction with the Central Susquehanna Oil and Gas Expo committee, Rep. Mike Hanna, Keystone Central School District’s Career and Technology Center and the Clinton County CareerLink, the Natural Gas Task Force is helping to coordinate several important upcoming education outreach efforts.
Thursday May 5th will feature a natural gas community meeting in conjunction with a career fair at the school district’s Career and Technology Center.
The Career and Technology Center and PA CareerLink – Clinton County are hosting the career exploration fair at the Central Mountain High School gym that will run from 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. primarily for students and again from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. to allow for participation from the general public.
The career fair will allow students from grades 9-12 a chance to visit with a variety of local businesses and industries to see firsthand the opportunities available to them as a result of the education they are receiving.
Many of the local industries, including the natural gas industry, will have literature and representatives on hand to discuss employment opportunities with the students as they start making their career decisions or to better prepare themselves for the future.
As noted, the daytime session is open only to the Keystone Central students, however in the evening the career fair will be open to the public. This will allow residents and parents to see what is available to their students, as well as what the driving industries of the local community are.
Jim Ladlee, Clinton County Penn State Cooperative Extension Director, will be on hand to discuss how students access the more than 150 different careers necessary to bring an unconventional natural gas well into production. Career options range from rig hand (roughneck) to geologist and environmental compliance technician to engineer.
Many of the employee characteristics valued by natural gas sector are the same characteristics most well run businesses look for. Most people who are successful getting a job with oil, gas, and energy service businesses have a strong work ethic, are problem solvers, have some basic industry knowledge and safety training, and can pass a drug screening test.
Students can demonstrate some of the basic characteristics by staying in school, showing up on-time for class every day, staying off drugs, and demonstrating they are problem solvers through their school and community activities like sports, scouts, 4-H, FFA, and other clubs.
MEET-U Education Trailer
Through a sponsorship from The WorkCenter at Susquehanna Health, the MEET-U mobile educational trailer will be available at Central Mountain High School for the duration of the Career Fair.
The MEET-U is an interactive educational exhibit on the energy industry with information leading up to the most recent natural gas industry. The exhibit helps people realize how energy is used in many places and gives them a better understanding of where energy comes from. Not only is there information on natural gas extraction, but the energy industry as a whole including solar, wind and coal.
Through initial funding efforts of the Friends of Drake Well, the MEET-U was designed to educate youth about energy issues, history of energy use and the future of energy extraction. Complete with interactive screens, 15 television monitors and push button stations, the MEET-U not only teaches students about the energy industry but has activities for adults, too.
Energy education helps people understand where energy comes from, how it is produced and what happens when we turn the light switch on, light the gas stove or push the button to open the garage door.
New MEET-U improvements for 2011 include the trailer being divided into 3 zones: the using zone, finding/production zone and the energy zone. The energy zone is designed to describe the pros and cons of each energy source for the future.
During 2010, the MEET-U mobile trailer and staff travelled nearly 7,100 miles across PA and visited with over 16,000 students and 30,000 adults. The MEET-U and its staff will be available in the evening for the general public from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. on May 5 at Central Mountain High School.
The 44-foot trailer will be hard to miss in its colorful display in the parking lot. Should you be unable to visit the unit on May 5th, the MEET-U will be on display during the Central Susquehanna Oil and Gas Expo at the Lycoming County fairgrounds on Saturday May 7th from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.
There is no cost to attend either event and everyone is encouraged to come out and visit the exhibit.
Meeting With Rep. Hanna
During the evening session of the Career Fair, Rep. Mike Hanna will be hosting an information meeting about natural gas exploration. This is the third such meeting held in Rep. Hanna’s 76th State House District.
The meeting will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. with the first hour open for attendees to meet with local and state agencies, natural gas industry representatives and natural gas industry experts.
Some of the state agencies include the Department of Environmental Protection, Department of Transportation, State Police, and Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Representatives from the Susquehanna River Basin Commission, Marcellus Center for Outreach and Research, Penn State Extension Office, PA Career Link-Clinton County and local natural gas industry companies will be on hand for presentations and provide information for the general public.
The second hour of the event will feature a panel discussion and allow for a question and answer session for community members in the audience. The panel and exhibit members are all on hand to help discuss the current issues and to provide information to help community members make informed decisions about natural gas opportunities and challenges.
All of these events are geared to educate – to educate the youth of today on educational and career choices available to them; to educate the general public on the natural gas industry; to educate the community on what the state and local agencies are doing to protect its residents; to educate the natural gas industry about what the community values; and to educate the public on available resources as this industry continues to develop around us.
This column is presented weekly by the Public Education sub-committee of the Clinton County Natural Gas Task Force in an effort to provide accurate, up-to-date information on activities surrounding the Marcellus Shale formation and the natural gas exploration industry.
For more information on Task Force activities, visit the Task Force webpage on the Clinton County government website.
(Written by Matt Henderson, a business consultant with the Lock Haven University Small Business Development Center.)
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5/2/2011 |
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