The ribbon was officially cut this week on the new $550,000 addition to the Sustainable Energy Education Center/Wind Energy and Turbine Technology building on the Estherville campus of Iowa Lakes Community College.
College President Valerie Newhouse said the new addition allows the college to expand the program and serve more students. She also credited Iowa Lakes Electric Cooperative with securing a $350,000 U.S. Department of Agriculture loan to help move the project forward in a timely manner.
“This addition provides state-of-the-art technology for our Wind Energy students and allows them to learn necessary skills for the wind industry in a controlled environment prior to working on wind turbines,” President Newhouse said.
“The addition allowed the college to accept two more sections of students into the wind energy program.”
Iowa Lakes Board of Trustees President Jan Lund talked about the growth of the program – from 15 students in the fall of 2004 to 155 in the fall of this year.
“This growth in facilities has allowed Iowa Lakes to expand from one lecture room and one lab five years ago; to four lecture rooms and six labs today,” Lund said, thus engaging more students in exploring sustainable energy careers.
About Iowalakes Community CollegeLocated in the picturesque Iowa Great Lakes Region, Iowa Lakes offers several locations throughout a five-county service area: Algona, Emmetsburg, Estherville, Spencer and Spirit Lake. You can take classes either full time or part time; days, evenings or weekends; via television, fiber optics or with a professor in the classroom; and via the Internet with online courses. You can also choose college transfer, career option, technical or vocational courses, one class at a time, or continuing education classes.College transfer involves taking your first two years of general studies at Iowa Lakes, achieving an Associate in Arts degree and then transferring to a college of your choice. More than a dozen four-year colleges have formal ‘articulation’ agreements with Iowa Lakes which you can read about online. If your college isn’t listed, refer to this checklist to plan for your transfer.Career option courses are designed to prepare you for work – or transfer to a four-year college – after completion of an Associate in Science degree.Technical programs at Iowa Lakes qualify you for an Associate in Applied Science degree after two years of study and work experience designed to prepare you for successful job entry.
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 Rick Olesen, Vice President of Operations and Engineering for Iowa Lakes Electric Cooperative addressed the crowd and then received an award on behalf of his firm which was presented by Pres. Newhouse and Trustee Pres. Lund.Judy Cook, Executive Dean of Instruction and Development, introduced Riley Groves, a Wind Energy and Turbine Technology student. Groves is in his second year at Iowa Lakes and plans to transfer to the University of Iowa’s Engineering Program through the articulation agreement Iowa Lakes has with the College of Engineering. Last summer, he completed a successful internship at AES Wind Generation in Alta. He spoke about why he selected Iowa Lakes and where this career path will lead him.Construction was completed by Christensen Construction of Estherville. The architectural firm was Frevert-Ramsey-Kobes. Now that the ribbon is cut on the 6,200 square foot addition, students will begin using the classrooms in the spring term which begins Jan. 14.Source www.iowalakes.edu
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