West Virginia workforce plan for nuclear would lean on partnerships, not new engineering degrees, presenters say

Tony Stroud, chief legal officer and vice president of strategic initiatives, told the committee that preparing a workforce for nuclear development will require a range of roles — not only nuclear engineers — and that many operator and technician jobs can be filled through associate‑degree programs, certificates and simulation training.

Stroud described the Power Tech Center collaboration (West Virginia University, Shepherd University, Blue Ridge Community Technical College and Marshall University) as an effort to develop consistent curricula for community colleges and universities statewide. He said simulation centers, certificate programs and partnerships with neighboring states’ training organizations can provide operators and technicians without the state having to stand up a full nuclear engineering department.

Stroud cited a regional study showing nuclear industry jobs include direct, indirect and induced employment and average wages in the sector that exceed other industries in the region. He urged creation of a state liaison or point of contact — analogous to the DOE liaison used in the federal pilot program — to help expedite state processes and to coordinate workforce and permitting needs.

Legislators asked whether simulation programs are done in partnership with local colleges; Stroud said they typically are, and that those local partnerships could be expanded in West Virginia. He suggested the Power Tech Center could itself host a state‑level liaison to help projects move through state processes more efficiently.