Project Description

Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning

Skilled HVAC technicians are in demand. A challenging career with vast employment opportunities awaits students who complete training in this field. The demand for technicians is just as strong locally as it is nationally. According to a recent issue of Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration News, 65,000 service technicians will be needed over the next decade. Students who complete the program will have the opportunity to receive Refrigeration Certification and take the ICE (Industry Competency Examination). The program covers oil heat systems, gas heating systems, heat pumps and air conditioning, air distribution systems, and refrigeration skills. This rapidly expanding industry provides you with job opportunities that are unmatched by most occupations and numerous openings for advancement and earning potential.

Ken Hassinger

Mr. Hassinger was born in Bellefonte. He attended the Wingate Elementary School and the Bald Eagle Area High School. After graduating from BEA, he spent two years at Penn State University and then joined the Air Force. He was trained to guard nuclear weapons and to be a radar operator. He was married to the love of his life while in the USAF on October 9th of 1976, the Bicentennial year of our nation’s founding. He had two lovely daughters, one in 1984 and one in 1986. They are both BEA and PSU graduates. In June of 1978, he started in business with his father, William Hassinger. In 1991, he began working for Phoenix Engineering. Phoenix Engineering was bought by Berrena’s Refrigeration and they were then bought out by Allied Mechanical. In 2005, Mr. Hassinger was given the opportunity to teach a beginning plumbing course for OPP at Penn State for the the Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology. After this first exposure to teaching, Mr. Hassinger found that he loved to teach and was hired teach the HVAC/Plumbing course at the Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology. You can see Mr. Hassinger in the halls with a smile on his face still amazed that he is being paid for doing something he loves!

There is seldom homework assigned in HVAC. There is always time given to accomplish assignments. There are occasional take-home tests that allow students to find the correct answer any way that they can – they just need to find the correct answer. This promotes research from sources outside the classroom. When the students are outside school working, they must find answers to the challenges they encounter. The right answer is what is important, not where they got it. There are often opportunities for “service calls” at CPI. The HVAC class has done work in many areas of the school including Landscaping and Horticulture, Culinary Arts, Advertising Arts, the Boardroom, and the schools computer room. Occasional chances for community service are avialable. HVAC services the dehumidifiers for “Paws” and has worked on the boiler at “The Christian Academy” in Bellefonte and the Bellefonte Teener League ball field.
OSHA 501
National certification showing 10 hr. training in general industry safety
Student Cost: Free

EPA 608
National certification required by law to work with refrigerants in stationary equipment
Student Cost: Free

EPA 609
National certification required by law to work on automotive air conditioning
Student Cost: Free

ICE Residential
National industry standard showing competence in gas fired equipment, oil fired equipment, air distribution, air conditioning and heat pumps.
Student Cost: Free

Beckett Oil Burners
National industry certification showing training in oil burners
Student Cost: Free

Gastite CSST
National industry standard required for installing Gastite corrugated stainless steel tubing
Student Cost: Free

Pennsylvania Builders Association Certificate
Students who complete the program and score advanced on the end of program assessment (NOCTI) will have their names added to the Pennsylvania Builders Association website for employers seeking highly skilled employees.
Student Cost: Free

Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)
National certification showing competence in handling indoor air quality issues
Student Cost: Free

410A Refrigerant
National certification showing training received in the use of very high pressure refrigerant 410A
Student Cost: Free