College Students Study Ins and Outs of Oil and Gas Drilling

June 30, 2010

In the Gulf of Mexico, oil is spewing out uncontrollably, contaminating wildlife, water quality and shorelines, while causing unknown economic hardship to millions of Americans. Environmentalists and others are calling for a quick end to oil drilling and reduced dependency on fossil fuels. At the same time, colleges in several parts of the country are developing classes, and even programs, in oil and gas drilling.

According to The Graham Leader, North Central Texas College (NCTC) will expand its new oil and gas technology curriculum to a second campus. In May, the first class of oil and gas field technicians graduated from the school's campus in Bowie, and this fall the program will be extended to its location in Graham. "The demand [for trained employees] is there," says Billy Giles, who was hired in 2008 to run the program. The proof, to date, is that every recent Bowie campus graduate already has a job.

When, five years ago, NCTC realized that the gas and oil industry was struggling to find trained and qualified workers, it contacted businesses in the field for support to build the program. As a result, several companies paid for the program facility and others provide scholarships so that all students who enter the program have financial assistance. Giles says, "The support has been unbelievable. Every time we've needed something, we just picked up the phone and got it."

NCTC's program lasts two years and provides an associate degree. Students learn the basics of the oil and natural gas industry, including safety and technology, and many have the opportunity to intern with local companies. "Our focus is to train field technicians. These guys are more likely to carry a laptop computer than a wrench," says Giles.

Meanwhile, colleges in Pennsylvania are developing new classes in natural gas drilling. The discovery of huge repositories of gas in Marcellus Shale in a five-state region was the spark behind the establishment of natural gas drilling programs at Lackawanna College and Johnson College in Scranton, Keystone College in La Plume, and the Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport.

"Marcellus Shale is going to be big business," says Lackawanna College spokesman Christopher Kucharski, in the Standard Speaker. Indeed, a study conducted by Penn State University and sponsored by the gas industry, found that Marcellus Shale natural gas extraction could create more than 200,000 jobs in Pennsylvania, bringing in $18 billion by 2010.

However, the disaster in the Gulf is not being entirely ignored by college administrators. According to The Minnesota Daily, educators at the University of Minnesota are designing a class entitled "Oil and Water: The Gulf Oil Spill of 2010." It will address the history and ecology of the Gulf, Louisiana's economy and the impact of oils spills on the environment and the population.

The course will also look at how the economy and the environments of the Gulf and Minnesota are affected by each other. Robert Gilmer, the instructor, is well aware of the connections and contradictions. He says, "What fascinates me the most about it is looking at all the paradoxes involved."

Compiled by Abigail Rome

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