With New Mexico’s commitment to developing and utilizing sustainable energy, providing a workforce proficient in that emerging new economy is the focus of New Mexico Highlands University’s Dr. D. Veena Parboteeah’s discussion during an upcoming Creative Santa Fe Beyond Profit session.
Parboteeah, Highlands Dean of the School of Business, Media, and Technology, provides strategic leadership in academic quality, program innovation and community engagement.
The free session Feb. 4 from 4-8:30 p.m. at the Christ Church Santa Fe also will include Terra Argo of the Comanche Nation of Oklahoma, who is a national leader in Tribal energy engagement, advancing collaborative approaches to energy development and infrastructure, as well as Solomon Gbara, a University of New Mexico senior and founder of TalentSync, which is focused on expanding student access to internships, research, and career pathways in New Mexico’s emerging energy and technology sectors.
“I’ll be talking about what is needed to get the workforce ready for this new industry, training students for jobs that may not even exist yet,” Parboteeah said as she looks to make Highlands a leader in preparing today’s and tomorrow’s students for these opportunities.
Parboteeah has researched this topic through conversations with industry leaders and entrepreneurs.
“We want to know what they are expecting and what are the skills that will benefit the future workforce. Then we can develop them within the two-year and four-year pathways,” she said. “We’re also looking at K-12, particularly high school students, to get them interested in these careers early on.”
Additionally, Parboteeah said, it’s important that these students have commitment and engagement from the industry to provide invaluable, hands-on training and experience while they’re still attending school.
“The key to all of this is that there is access for rural and underserved communities,” Parboteeah said. “We have pathways and curriculum for current and future students to engage in. And we want to be able to use stackable credits and certificate programs for people from different industries who want to upskill and do a set of courses to be ready for this industry.”
The session will begin with a job fair that includes industry leaders like PNM, as well as local startups like Kairos and Array Solar.
Parboteeah is encouraging Highlands students attend and if there is enough interest, she will look into the possibility of getting transportation, “so keep me in the loop if you’re interested in attending,” she said.
For more information, see https://creativesantafe.org/events/from-coal-to-clean-transforming-our-workforce-for-a-sustainable-southwest/.