Goodwill Celebrates First Graduates from Solar Installer Training
Seven Nashville area adults are lighting the way for others to launch exciting careers in the clean energy industry.
On Feb. 9, Lorenzo Fanning, Patrick Feld, Daniel Lazo, Nancy McGrath, Justin Springfield, Waymon Tharpe and Antonio Walker, became the inaugural graduating class from Goodwill’s new Solar Installer Training program, also known as the Clean Tech Accelerator. They received numerous rounds of applause — and also career-building certifications — during a graduation ceremony at Goodwill’s training facility in downtown Nashville.
One by one the students were called up to shake hands with the class instructors — employees of Goodwill’s training partner Grid Alternatives — as well as Gooodwill leaders. They were then presented with a folder containing their certifications for Installer Basics Training 120, OSHA 10, CPR and Construction Basics.
“I’m super excited to have the opportunity to be here,” McGrath said while thanking Goodwill and her instructors. “I have an absolute passion for solar and saving the environment. I think it’s the future, and I am going to dedicate the rest of my life to promoting it.”
In the audience were representatives from six midstate clean energy companies: Ace LLC.,. Solar; Distributive Solar; Energy Source Partners; Greenwave; Lightwave; and Renew Solar Solutions. Earlier in the day, the representatives held a panel discussion with the students and then conducted one-on-one, round-robin job interviews with each of them.
During the 120-hour class, students learned electrical energy fundamentals, safety standards, installation basics, solar storage systems, maintenance, site evaluation, customer service and more. They got hands-on experience, bending conduit, wiring electric meters and climbing onto a sloping mock roof to install brackets and set up a solar array. They also received training in topics such as problem-solving, interview skills and resume writing.
Participation in the class is free, and students receive a weekly stipend to assist them in overcoming life challenges and barriers to program completion.
The Clean Tech Accelerator has been made possible through Goodwill’s generous donors as well as through partnerships with Accenture, Goodwill Industries International, Tennessee Valley Authority, Nashville Electric Service, Grid Alternatives, Lightwave Solar and the Robert K. and Ann H. Zelle Fund for Education of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.
“The world needs this (training),” graduate Lorenzo Fanning said, motioning toward his fellow graduates. “And if we can learn it in three weeks, the world can learn it in three weeks.”
Goodwill’s next Solar Installer class begins on Feb. 26.
