More students are taking advantage of the NETA Electrical Power Testing Technician program opportunity at Long Beach City College (LBCC) in California. The curriculum, which debuted in early 2018 at LBCC, is meant to attract those interested in a path to a career as an Electrical Power Testing Technician (EPTT). The program has also identified new NETA Certified Technicians as instructors for the program.
Fourteen students completed the first course of the curriculum, High Voltage Safety Awareness, in fall 2018. Twenty-two completed the course in spring 2019.
LBCC Open House and Career Technical Education Night
NETA continues to raise awareness about the program. On May 17, 2019, three NETA Accredited Companies (NACs) represented NETA at the LBCC Open House and first of its kind Career Technical Education (CTE) Night. During the free, trade show-style event, attendees and prospective students were greeted by members of the NETA Training Committee including Bob Sheppard, Premier Power Maintenance; Nenad Pasic, Tony Demaria Electric; and Ken Peterson, Hampton Tedder Technical Services. Tommy Reyes, Darwin Salvatierra, and Hayatt Salvatierra, all of Tony Demaria Electric, as well as two future LBCC instructors, Neil Sepulveda, PE, and Erfan Bamdad, PE, both with Tony Demaria Electric, assisted the committee members.
The NACs representing NETA raised awareness about the program and potential careers to local residents and prospective students. Numerous questions were answered and NETA promotional items distributed, leaving prospective students with a better idea about what a career in the electrical testing industry entails.
The NACs were joined by LBCC staff, including John Hauck, a retired LBCC Electrical Technology instructor who was instrumental in aligning the NETA Curriculum courses developed by Bob Sheppard with LBCC’s existing curriculum and the State of California Department of Education. Scott Fraser, LBCC Trades and Industry Department Chair and Electrical Technology Professor, also spent time at the NETA booth. Fraser is scheduled to participate in the upcoming NETA Member Meeting in San Diego on September 20, 2019.
NETA Booth
(left to right: John Hauck, Scott Fraser, Ken Peterson, Bob Sheppard, Nenad Pasic, and Erfan Bamdad.
LBCC High Voltage Test Technician Curriculum
LBCC Electrical Technology, NETA High Voltage Test Technician Associate in Science Degree Curriculum Guide
LBCC’s Electrical Technology Associate in Science degree with an emphasis in NETA High Voltage Test Technician curriculum is attainable for students. As the Curriculum Guide for Academic Year 2019-2020 indicates, the Associate of Science in NETA High Voltage Test Technician Certificate of Achievement will prepare students for entry-level employment in the high-voltage testing and certification industry.
All new students must attend an electrical orientation prior to enrollment to ensure the safety of LBCC electrical students. Upon completion of the Electrical Technology Certificate of Achievement and the NETA High Voltage Test Technician Certificate of Achievement, the student should be able to test, maintain, and repair high-voltage electrical systems in a safe manner.
Program Courses
Required concentration courses for NETA High-Voltage Test Technician program include:
- ELECT 250 – Electrical Code–Industrial, 3 units
- ELECT 256 – High Voltage Safety Awareness, 1 unit
- ELECT 265 – Conductors, 2 units
- ELECT 266 – Circuit Breakers, 2 units
- ELECT 267 – Switchgear and Switchboards, 2 units
- ELECT 268 – Transformers, 2 units
Instructors
The ELECT 250, Electrical Code–Industrial course is already taught by an LBCC instructor, while ELECT 256, High Voltage Safety Awareness, first offered in fall 2019, continues to be taught by Mike Paik, PE, of Tony Demaria Electric.
Sepulveda and Bamdad have been identified as potential new instructors for the LBCC program, but there is still an ongoing need for more instructors. This would ensure faster program implementation, as well as continuous and additional course offerings each semester, and would speed up graduation of the first future NETA High Voltage Test Technicians. Interviews are conducted to assure that instructor candidates possess the required teaching skills; have been and are exposed to the industry, field work, and acceptance and maintenance testing; and have the professional level of skills and knowledge needed to teach the required LBCC concentration courses from the LBCC Electrical Technology, NETA High Voltage Test Technician program.
To express interest in becoming a EPTT instructor, contact Scott Fraser, LBCC department head of trades and industrial technology, at sfraser@lbcc.edu.
Bob Sheppard is currently the Director of Sales and Marketing for Premier Power Maintenance. He is the company’s NETA Accredited Representative, and serves on various committees in the NETA organization. He earned a BS in electrical power at Idaho State University.
Nenad Pasic (Neno) is the NETA Accredited Representative and IT Manager for Tony Demaria Electric (TDE). Neno has been working with TDE for almost 20 years. He is a member of the NETA Training Committee and NETA Promotions and Marketing Committee. Neno is active in IEEE as a member of the IEEE Computer Society, IEEE Communications Society, and IEEE Information Theory Society. He is an NFPA Member, and an Electrical Section of the NFPA Member. Neno earned a BS in computer information systems, business administration from California State University–Dominguez Hills, and has earned project management and information technology management certificates from the University of California–Los Angeles (UCLA).