Petroleum Resources Workshop connects K-12 teachers with oil and gas industry
Montana Technological University will hold a free workshop in the summer of 2024 for K-12 teachers to learn about the petroleum industry and its impact on their local community. Hess Corporation will sponsor the free Montana Petroleum Resources Workshop, which will include room and board for the week. Participating teachers receive 31 License Renewal Units or two graduate college credits from Montana State University-Billings. Montana Tech’s Petroleum Engineering faculty will lead the workshop, which will be held June 10-14 in Billings.
“It’s a weeklong course for Montana K-12 school teachers,” Petroleum Engineering Department Head Todd Hoffman said. “It’s mostly math and science teachers, but anyone can come. We teach them about the oil and gas industry, and provide hands-on lessons and fun experiments they can take back to their classroom.”
The program includes presentations about the petroleum industry, including leasing land, regulations, exploration, geology, drilling and production basics. In addition, topics on the future energy supply, sustainability, and climate change are discussed. Potential solutions to climate change, such as CO2 sequestration, are also covered. Besides the classroom content, the program includes three field trips to oilfield operations to see how petroleum is produced and refined. The highlight of the course is the hands-on activities and experiments demonstrating different aspects of the oil and gas industry.
Erin Lynch is a 4th grade teacher at Sunnyside Intermediate School in Havre.
“I learned so much about the petroleum industry and the amount of high-paying jobs right here in Montana for people with education ranging from a high school diploma to PhDs,” Lynch said. “There are so many options.”
Lynch brought what she learned back to her students.
“I’ve had to scaled back many of the concepts for 4th graders, but I've been able to go deeper into what is underground with my students when studying Earth Science,” Lynch said. “They thought it was really neat that we could map what is below the surface.”
Lynch has been teaching for 13 years in the classroom, with six additional years in outdoor education.
“I'm always looking for ways to incorporate career opportunities into my instruction and delve deeper into fun science concepts,” Lynch said. “The field trips and the hands-on activities that I can bring back to my classroom were the best part of this workshop.”
For Hoffman, the opportunity to connect with teachers is key to connecting students with meaningful, well-paid careers in the industry.
Montana Tech has the state’s only petroleum engineering program and one of only 20 in the country, but many positions in the industry only require a high school education.
“We are proud of our bachelor’s degree program, but there are high-paying jobs that require a high school diploma,” Hoffman said. “If students want to stay in Montana, that’s a great opportunity.”
For questions about the Workshop or registration, contact Lana Petersen at 406-782-2342 or ljpet@hotmail.com. The program brochure can be found here.