How One Technical College Uses Scanifly To Help Students Prep For Coveted Jobs In Renewable Energy
Key Takeaways:
The renewable energy industry has a huge talent gap, but many programs don’t teach the complete set of skills employers require.
Leveraging Scanifly as part of her curriculum, Ashley Wojtalewicz, a professor at Southwest Wisconsin Technical College (SWTC), designed an Associate’s Degree in Sustainable Energy Management.
This program bridges the talent gap for students, teaching the strategic planning and hands-on skills necessary to achieve coveted certifications and build careers in renewable energy that can earn well into the six-figures after a few years of experience.
A Growing Industry Hungry for Talent
The renewable energy industry is growing rapidly—by 2030, there will be an estimated need for 2.8 million “blue collar” jobs, including planning, installation, and maintenance of solar and wind infrastructure.
There are two typical paths into the renewable energy industry today: highly educated individuals moving into leadership roles or individuals taking a niche skills training program and working their way up. But a problem arises: either people have Bachelor's or Master's degrees but limited installation experience, or people can install certain specific technologies but lack the overall skills to plan and maintain system-wide projects.
Ashley Wojtalewicz—a solar professional who moved from Eagle Point Solar to become a professor at Southwest Wisconsin Technical College (SWTC)—aims to create a bridge across this missing middle with SWTC’s 2-year Associate's Degree in Sustainable Energy Management. This program welcomed its first cohort in 2023, with an expected graduation in 2025.
As Ashley built the curriculum for this first-of-its-kind program, she turned to Scanifly for help. Now she leverages Scanifly in multiple ways, including Scanifly Academy’s Surveyor Associate Program content to help build her Solar PV course and using Scanifly’s design software in hands-on labs.
Beyond the classroom, Ashley’s partnership with Scanifly has helped her in student recruitment. For example, she uses Scanifly when explaining her program to peers at conferences. Further, she uses Scanifly to show potential employers what her students will be learning.
How Southwest Wisconsin Technical College Leverages Scanifly
The Associate’s Degree program has what Ashley calls “stackable credentials”. If students complete one term, they become a Certified Solar Installer with a Scanifly credential. After two terms, students get a Building Management Technician Certification.
Students who fulfill the entire four-term, two-year degree requirement are set up for roles like Energy Manager (or similar titles). The starting pay is between $60,000-$70,000, but on average, it grows to earn well over $100,000 per year.
Here’s how Ashley works with Scanifly as part of the whole program, from curriculum to student marketing and peer advocacy.
1. Scanifly in the classroom
Every course in the program is hybrid in nature: Ashley will give lectures and hands-on labs in person, and students have a self-directed online component. One example is the program’s Solar PV course, which teaches the basics of photovoltaic systems, site assessments, performance modeling, and PV system design.
“We're trying to make it so people just have to come to campus one day a week,” said Ashley. That way, it's a lot easier for people from the industry to get involved.”
Scanifly Academy plays a big part in making this happen, filling much of the online educational component for the Solar PV course.
“I'd say probably 80% of my online content [for the Solar PV course] is Scanifly Academy,” said Ashley. “... I lecture on a topic, and then students watch a similar topic on Scanifly Academy—it seemed like that was very beneficial for students as a way to reinforce [the concepts].
2. Scanifly for hands-on skill building
On top of lectures and self-paced online learning, the courses have a lab component. In the Solar PV lab, Ashley relies on Scanifly’s platform so students can see how the entire end-to-end solar process comes together.
In partnership with Scanifly, she got licenses for herself as an administrator and for all students—that way, she can not just teach the software but also give assignments and grade performance.
“I created a final lab for my students that was dedicated to if students actually had to walk through the design process from getting a lead to designing a project for install,” said Ashley.
3. Scanifly for student marketing
Ashley first brought Scanifly into the classroom because it’s a key industry software. Then she started showcasing it when talking to high school students considering their next steps.
“This is a really cool way to engage students who aren't quite sure where they want to be,” said Ashley. Then they might think, ‘I could fly a drone for a big part of my career.’ So that’s a cool way to engage a high school audience.”
Scanifly provided Ashley with marketing-ready designs and 3D models so she could show off what students will learn in the course. This made all the difference, said Ashley, since not all student-made models were ready to be shown in public yet.
“Scanifly is such a cool visual representation of doing something in my field, so I use Scanifly very heavily in my [student] recruitment,” said Ashley.
4. Scanifly and the future of renewable energy education
SWTC was selected as part of a Department of Energy grant to promote renewable energy education. Further, Ashley said the program is being profiled by the Community College Research Center as a way to teach emerging technologies in clean energy that can lead to high-wage jobs.
As part of these programs—and more—Ashley routinely speaks with peers and at conferences. Here too, Scanifly helps her succeed. She’s able to demonstrate the platform to educators, and she says all of them instantly love it and want to see how they can implement it in their programs.
“Instructors come to the college, and I use Scanifly as an example. Everyone thinks that it's so cool,” said Ashley. “So now other colleges want it [for their renewable energy programs].”
Expanding Theory and Practice
Looking ahead, Ashley is already working to iteratively improve the course. In particular, she’s hoping to link the Solar PV course directly with NABCEP so students can become accredited after completing it.
This is all in service of a bigger mission: not just helping people get great jobs in a growing industry but also changing perspectives on what type of education someone needs to get hired and be successful in their career.
“We're going to be able to help bridge that gap and start showing employers that you don't have to have a four-year degree to get into this industry,” said Ashley. “... There are not many people targeting this area at the tech college level. We're trying to pioneer our way here.”
