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16 n e w h a v e n B I Z | J u l y 2 0 2 1 | n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m PHOTO | TRACY DEER-MIREK F O C U S : C o l l e g e s & U n i v e r s i t i e s S acred Heart University in Fairfield has tapped into the burgeoning cra brewing industry in Connecticut, cre- ating the state's first brewing science certification program. e 11-month program began in May 2020, offering 22 credits with coursework both online and in person. e curriculum includes training in the science of ingredients, recipe design, and fermentation, as well as classes in quality control, operating and managing a brewery, sanitation and safety, and brewing law and legal compliance. At $650 per credit, the program costs $14,300, not including books and materials, and you must be at least 21 years old to register. e program is offered through St. Vincent's College, which SHU acquired in 2018. St. Vincent's offers associate degrees primarily in allied health careers, but decided to add the brewing science program to be "responsive to the needs of our community," said Maryanne Davidson, dean of St. Vincent's College. "e average age of our students is 27 years old," Davidson said. "We have adults coming in for re-skilling, upskilling, and we want to provide programming that would meet workforce development needs." Sacred Heart finds increasing demand for state's first brewing certification program By David Krechevsky Brewing boom e cra brewing industry's needs in Connecticut have changed dramatically over the past decade. According to the Connecticut Brewers Guild, the state had just 16 breweries in 2011; 10 years later, there are 121 breweries here, with more on the way. Brewers Guild Executive Director Phil Pappas said breweries in Connecticut em- ploy about 2,000 people, and if you include distributors and related jobs, employs about 6,000 overall. e COVID-19 pandemic stunted the industry's rapid growth, Pappas said, but the sector still ended 2020 with a net gain of nine breweries. He praised the SHU program, noting those interested in a career would try brew- ing beer at home or working part time at bars or cra breweries to learn the trade. "is is the first program of its kind in Connecticut to provide a more traditional educational route," he said. Skilled help wanted SHU cites more than 30 breweries in Connecticut that have agreed to offer intern- ships and/or facility tours, and many have expressed interest in hiring graduates. John Rehm, director of brewing opera- tions at Two Roads Brewing Co. in Stratford, said his organization employs 130 people, including 28 in production. Two Roads takes pride in training new employees, he said, but would prefer people with experience. "It takes 18 to 24 months to be a com- petent, entry-level brewer," he said. "at's a long time to invest in somebody as an employer." Jason Sobocinski, of Black Hog Brewing in Oxford, said his company employs seven people in production and 16 overall. He said SHU's program makes sense, since the state has so many breweries with more on the way. He said his business part- ner and Black Hog's master brewer, Tyler Jones, learned his cra in a program at the University of California-Davis. "To have something that's on par with that right here in our backyard, it gets me excited," Sobocinski said. e UC-Davis program, founded in 1971, is the country's oldest. A search online found more than 20 schools, including the Uni- versity of Vermont and SUNY Schenectady County Community College in New York, offering similar programs. Brewing "is definitely a science, but it's an art too," Sobocinski said. "A brewer's job is to make really great and consistent beer, no matter what you're brewing." Mixing beer and science at's something Geffrey Stopper under- stands. An associate professor of biology at SHU with a doctorate in ecology and evolu- tionary biology, Stopper is the director of the Brewing Science program. at's not a surprise; aer defending his doctoral dissertation at Yale University, he told the Ph.D. committee he "was going to start a brewery," he said. His science career got in the way, but Stopper already was well versed in brewing and fermentation. His father was a wine- maker in southern Pennsylvania; Stopper was a home brewer and spent more than four years as an assistant brewer at BAR New Ha- ven, known for its beer and brick-oven pizza. He teamed up with Kirk Bartholomew, Ph.D., assistant chair- man of SHU's Biology Department, who created a lab to introduce basic biology concepts to students through making wine. Stopper said they "realized we could teach a lot more of our biology concepts in an engaging way by making beer." As they worked on that, Vinny Cataudella, the associate registrar for St. Future brew masters John Rehm is the director of brewing operations at Two Roads Brewing Co. Geffrey Stopper Sacred Heart University brewery certification students get a hands-on course at Two Roads Brewing Co. in Stratford. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED

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