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Nicholls State University continues to respond to the demand of local industry as the university partners with Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service to provide OSHA training in Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes.
The continuing education courses, which will be offered at the Duhe’ Building adjacent to the Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center, will allow industry workers to enroll in courses such as confined space entry, fall protection and industrial hygiene to earn Occupational Safety and Health Administration certifications.
The courses will benefit industry workers by having the opportunity to earn certifications without necessarily enrolling as a Nicholls student. The curriculum offered in Houma replicates what is embedded into the university’s academic program.
Michael Gautreaux, executive director of Nicholls’ Petroleum Engineering Technology and Safety Management Department, said classes are tentatively scheduled to begin at the end of June.
Classes will last four days for 7 ½ hours per day. At the end of the course, students will earn a certificate.
Gautreaux said students can combine multiple certificates to become a certified safety and health official with endorsements from Nicholls and Texas A & M.
“The growth (of industry) parallels the increased focus of the competency required in the oil and gas industry,” he said. “A lot of people who want to have a career in this industry are seeing they are limited in their progression without a degree. With a degree you can go much further.”
Bill Stansbury, program director for TEEX, said there are only four cooperate learning centers in the United States, including the new Nicholls site, two in Texas and one in New Mexico.
He said the extension service recognized the level of expertise at Nicholls and the program “seemed like a good fit.”
Ron Peddy, division director for TEEX, agreed with Stansbury and said there has to be a high level of trust between their organization and the cooperative learning center.
“We can trust them to present our courses with the same passion as we do. It’s hard to find that,” Peddy said.
Peddy said the oil and gas industry is in high demand and the Terrebonne- Lafourche area is centrally located to facilitate OSHA training.
Lee Orgeron, health and safety manager for Swire Oilfield Services, will be one of local industry’s subject matter experts in charge of training classes at the Duhe’ building.
Orgeron is also a graduate of the TEEX program, with more than 17 years of experience in the fabrication and oil and gas industry.
He said the partnership provides a convenience for local industry workers by offering the opportunity to learn a vast amount of information in a shorter period of time.
“A company benefits by having their employees have some type of education background about this information,” Orgeron said. “My employees may not understand why it is important to have a label on a container, but it’s my job to get them to understand.”
Al Davis, dean of university college at Nicholls, said the new courses offered in Houma will have an economic impact on the area’s growing industry.
“All you have to do is walk outside and look around to see what kind of economic possibilities we have here,” Davis said. “This is a workforce partnership as well as a strong academic partnership.”
Laynie Barrilleaux, vice president for academic affairs at Nicholls, said the partnership is a model of meeting workforce demand through continuing education.
“It shows that Nicholls is responding,” she said. “We know that we don’t have all the resources we need, but we know how to outreach and we know how to collaborate.”
Barrilleaux said the university continues to partner with the region’s hospitals and recently expanded its history curriculum to include a study abroad trip in partnership with the National World War II Museum in New Orleans.
“We are the epitome of a regional school,” she said. “We’re very engaged in what our region needs and we’re trying to respond.”
Nicholls State University and Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) sign an agreement to be designated as a TEEX Cooperative Learning Center (CLC), authorizing them to teach TEEX safety and health classes as a OSHA Training Institute Education Center host site in Houma. Pictured from left, top are: Michael Gautreaux, Nicholls Petroleum Engineering Technology and Safety Management Department director; Al Davis, dean of University College; Bill Stansbury, program director at the TEEX OSHA Training Institute Education Center; bottom left, Ron Petty, division director at the TEEX OSHA Training Institute Education Center; and Laynie Barrilleaux, vice president for academic affairs.
