Ecotech Institute was a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

for-profit college Proprietary colleges are for-profit colleges and universities. They are operated by their owners or investors, rather than a not-for-profit institution, religious organization, or government. Because they are not funded by tax money, their long ...

Aurora, Colorado Aurora (, ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, Arapahoe, Adams County, Colorado, Adams, and Douglas County, Colorado, Douglas List of counties in Colorado, ...

. It offered classes and certificates focused on

renewable energy Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...

and

energy efficiency Energy efficiency may refer to: * Energy efficiency (physics), the ratio between the useful output and input of an energy conversion process ** Electrical efficiency, useful power output per electrical power consumed ** Mechanical efficiency, a ra ...

. The first class graduated in June 2012 with 42 students with subsequent classes growing larger. The school closed in December 2018.

History

Ecotech's first classes began in July, 2010 in a temporary facility. The institute opened its new facilities in January, 2011 with almost 200 students, some starting their third quarter. The first class graduated June 21, 2012, receiving two year associate degrees in wind energy technology, solar energy technology, renewable energy technology and electrical engineering technology.

Facilities

Ecotech Institute's campus has

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a green building certification program used worldwide. Developed by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), it includes a set of rating systems for the design, construction ...

(LEED) gold certification from the

U.S. Green Building Council The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), co-founded by Mike Italiano, David Gottfried and Rick Fedrizzi in 1993, is a private 501(c)3, membership-based non-profit organization that promotes sustainability in building design, construction, and op ...

. The facility features

solar panels A solar cell panel, solar electric panel, photo-voltaic (PV) module, PV panel or solar panel is an assembly of photovoltaic solar cells mounted in a (usually rectangular) frame, and a neatly organised collection of PV panels is called a phot ...

and

wind turbines A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each year. ...

on its roof, as well as solar trees on the grounds, energy-saving zero-client computing technology and occupancy-sensitive lighting.

Curriculum

Ecotech Institute offers coursework in

and energy efficiency. These led to diploma certifications and were intended to be completed in 9–12 months.

Location

The Colorado location was selected because of the state's renewable energy resources as well as the state government's green-friendly reputation. Ecotech stated that it intended to "expand across the U.S." following the establishment of its Colorado campus.

Accreditation

Ecotech Institute programs were accredited by the

Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools The Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS) is a non-profit education corporation that was recognized until 2021 by the United States Department of Education as an independent and autonomous national accrediting body. ...

Ownership

The company that owned and operated the schools,

Education Corporation of America Education Corporation of America, headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, was a privately held company that operated proprietary colleges across the United States. Included were three schools with 31 campuses, plus one online school and four affilia ...

, is a privately held corporation headquartered in

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...

. ECA also owned Virginia College Online, which offered

distance education Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at a school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance. Traditionally, this usually in ...

academic programs via the Internet; Golf Academy of America;

New England College of Business and Finance New England College of Business (or NECB) is a Private college in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1909, NECB grants associate, bachelor's, and graduate degrees in Business, Digital Marketing and International Business. It is accredited by ...

;

Culinard Culinard was a culinary school owned by Education Corporation of America. It was opened in 2000 as part of the Birmingham, Alabama branch of Virginia College. The second campus was opened with the establishment of the Jacksonville, Florida bra ...

, the Culinary Institute of Virginia College, offering degrees in the

culinary art Culinary arts are the cuisine arts of food preparation, cooking and presentation of food, usually in the form of meals. People working in this field – especially in establishments such as restaurants – are commonly called chefs ...

References

External links

* * https://www.sentinelcolorado.com/news/metro/auroras-for-profit-ecotech-institute-closing-in-2019/ {{Authority control Former for-profit universities and colleges in the United States Defunct private universities and colleges in Colorado Education in Aurora, Colorado Educational institutions disestablished in 2018 Educational institutions established in 2010 2010 establishments in Colorado