There are roughly 40 battery-related companies in California, all working to solve energy storage challenges that are critical to the electric vehicle sector, the solar sector, the wind sector, consumer electronics and more.
New Battery University Program to Train Workforce to Lead Fast-Growing Industry
San Jose State University, CalCharge Launch New Continuing Education Program
Contact for Prospective Students:
Professor Ahmed Hambaba, SJSU, 408-924-3959
Contacts for Members of the Media:
BreAnda Northcutt, CalCharge, 916-446-1955
Sarah Golden, CalCharge, 415-453-0430
Pat Lopes Harris, SJSU, 408-656-6999
SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Feb. 12, 2013 – CalCharge, an energy storage innovation accelerator, and San Jose State University, the number one supplier of college graduates to Silicon Valley, are teaming up to launch a “battery university” in the high-tech capital of the world.
“As an institution of higher education, we know the challenges in meeting the workplace demand for trained personnel in this rapidly growing and changing field,” said SJSU Vice President for University Advancement Rebecca Dukes. “For this reason, we are very pleased to be partnering with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and CalCharge to meet this critical need of California’s clean energy ecosystem.”
Professional Education
Battery university courses—to be offered through SJSU’s professional education program—will educate a specialty workforce needed now for the rapidly growing battery industry. Classes are expected to start this summer in partnership with SJSU’s Charles W. Davidson College of Engineering, which sends more engineering professionals to Silicon Valley than any other university.
Leading scientists, entrepreneurs, industry and policy experts are meeting tonight to provide feedback on the vision and proposed curriculum.
“The fast-emerging energy storage industry is key to the continuing success of the multi-billion dollar global clean energy economy,” said Jeffrey Anderson, interim executive director of CalCharge. “Ceding this important sector to another country would be a tragic and short sighted mistake.”
Currently, most battery manufacturing takes place in China. However, there are roughly 40 battery-related companies in California—working to solve energy storage challenges that are critical to the electric vehicle sector, the solar sector, the wind sector, consumer electronics and more.
Venture Capital Leader
“California is both a patent and a venture capital leader in the battery sector in the United States, but we cannot rest on our laurels,” said Venkat Srinivasan, head of the Energy Storage and Distributed Resources groups at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. “Our sector is developing at such a rapid clip that if we want to maintain our leadership position, we must constantly innovate—and we need the top minds to do so.”
Today’s battery university launch event and briefing on the state of the California energy storage industry starts 6:30 p.m. Feb. 12 at the SJSU Network Meeting Center, 5201 Great America Parkway, Santa Clara. Doors open at 6 p.m. for a special State of the Union watch party before the official event begins.
Highlighting the importance of tonight’s event, former Sen. Jeff Bingaman, the longtime chair of the Senate’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee and a major champion of clean energy, will be on hand in one of his first appearances since leaving office a few weeks ago.
The event is open to the press and public and free of change.
About CalCharge
CalCharge is a partnership of CalCEF and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. CalCharge will bring together emerging and established California companies, academic and research institutions, government bodies, and financing sources to jumpstart a new era of energy storage technologies for the electric/hybrid vehicle, grid, and consumer electronics markets.
About San Jose State University
San Jose State University is the number one supplier of education, engineering, computer science and business graduates to Silicon Valley, the world’s high tech capital. SJSU is ranked in the top 15 master’s-level public universities in the West by U.S. News and World Report. San Jose State’s Charles W. Davidson College of Engineering also received top marks, ranking third in the nation among public engineering programs offering bachelor’s and master’s degrees, excluding service academies.
About Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory addresses the world’s most urgent scientific challenges by advancing sustainable energy, protecting human health, creating new materials, and revealing the origin and fate of the universe. Founded in 1931, Berkeley Lab’s scientific expertise has been recognized with 13 Nobel prizes. The University of California manages Berkeley Lab for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science.
About CalCEF
CalCEF works to promote the transition to a clean energy economy by creating institutions and investment vehicles that grow markets for clean energy technologies. CalCEF is a non-profit umbrella organization that pursues statewide and national agendas via 1) CalCEF Innovations, a 501(c)(3) that leads CalCEF’s analysis and product development efforts; 2) CalCEF Ventures, a 501(c)(4) that executes and scales the CalCEF investment strategy via a fund-of-funds model, partnering with leading investment managers; and 3) CalCEF Catalyst, a 501(c)(6) a platform for the creation of replicable models for “demand driven innovation” requiring the sustained collective action of stakeholders from across the clean energy sector.