Lake Charles' technical community college wasted no time developing programs to prepare the area's workforce.
According to the 2015-2016 Louisiana Economic Outlook report by Dr. Loren Scott and Dr. James Richardson, about three-quarters of the $103 billion in announced industrial expansions are scheduled to occur within the Lake Charles Metropolitan Statistical Area. In July 2014, the Lake Charles MSA was growing four times faster than the state as a whole.
This massive industrial boom in Southwest Louisiana has definitely changed the way SOWELA Technical College conducts business. The number of construction related jobs is growing into the tens of thousands, and in order to provide the training and programs needed for these occupations, SOWELA has had to add new programs and/or expand the capacity in others. The possibility of high wage jobs has had a direct impact on our enrollment.
From fall semester 2013 to fall semester 2014, enrollment grew 8 percent, and from spring 2013 to spring 2014, enrollment grew 24 percent. In fact, the Process Technology program, one of the in-demand occupations needed for the petro-chemical expansions, has almost doubled in enrollment in just one year. In response to industry demands, the college has developed what is known as a Fast-Track Process Technology program. This is a 16-week program that allows an individual who already has a degree to earn an associate of applied science degree in process technology in 16 weeks. We began our first class in May of this year with 18 students. Of these, two had associate degrees, 12 had bachelor's degrees, three had master's degrees, and one student had a doctorate. All 18 students completed the program in September.
Many people might ask, "Why would a student who already has a four-year degree or higher come back to college and earn an associate's degree?" The answer is simple: The starting salary for Process Technology graduates can range from $65,000 to $85,000 per year and higher in some instances. In addition to the PTech program, SOWELA has had to implement many short-term non-credit construction related programs because of the massive needs for workers in the construction related fields. Within just 1.5 years, the college has added a machinist program, millwright program, and a pipefitting program. Our existing welding program has been expanded, and we are in the process of a second expansion in order to train the large number of welders who will be needed to build the new GTL/LNG plants.
SOWELA has developed collaborative partnerships with other training providers in order to help produce more skilled workers. Partnerships have been developed with Associated Builders and Contractors, Praxair, CB&I, and the Plumbers and Steamfitters Union. In addition, SOWELA partnered with many of the local public secondary school systems that have implemented dual enrollment programs. The dual enrollment programs allow juniors and seniors who are still in high school to enroll in college classes and earn college and high school credit simultaneously. These high school students take these classes on their high school campus, at SOWELA's campuses, and in online formats. SOWELA currently has more than 650 dual enrollment students.
SOWELA has built new facilities in order to have the additional capacity needed to accommodate the training needs. In 2012, a 25,000-square-foot process technology building was opened; in 2013, a 45,000-square-foot arts and humanities building was opened; and in 2014 a 35,000-square-foot nursing and allied health building opened.
In 2015 ground will be broken on a new SOWELA campus in Jennings. In December 2012, when Sasol made the announcement about its potential $16 billion to $21 billion expansion, Gov. Jindal pledged $20 million to build a regional training center on the SOWELA campus to help provide the training programs and services needed for Sasol and the other petro-chemical industries in the area. Ground was broken in October 2014 on this 65,000-square-foot training facility with an anticipated completion date of December 2015.
This industrial boom has been a blessing for SOWELA and Southwest Louisiana. This blessing has required the college to become nimble and "think outside the box" in order to efficiently and effectively meet the demands for a burgeoning economy.
Dr. Neil Aspinwall has been the chancellor of SOWELA Technical Community College in Lake Charles since 2012. He was formerly the vice president of enrollment and student services at Waycross College, an institution within the University System of Georgia. Before that, he served as VP of economic development at Okefenokee Technical College, an institution within the Technical College System of Georgia.