Smart Grid

There are some great minds working on Smart Grid across the country. 
I joined a Department of Energy webcast last week and hear a lot about efforts going on across the country.  http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/news/progress_alerts.cfm/pa_id=648
I have had the privilege to manage a Department of Energy Grant that NWTC received to develop curriculum and a lab around smart grid technologies.  We convened a group of people in the utilities industry and asked them what the future looked like in this area.  The answers we received were amazingly diverse and yet right on track with the types of occupancies we train people for.  I can see smart grid training as a portion of our energy management, utilities engineering, solar energy and electrical power distribution programs.
Jeff DeLaune is the Smart Grid Coordinator for the Department of Energy Grant.  He is working on a smart grid simulator that will essentially create a micro-grid at NWTC.  I believe the possibilities for the use of this with our programs, with our utilities and with our businesses is enormous.  I am lucky to work with such talented people.

 

Students participate in Energy Competition

Students in NWTC's Energy and Conservation club have been participating in the WPS Energy Service Club Challenge.  The competition had a couple of requirements:

1. Ten students agreed to reduce their energy bills by at least 5% over the course of September, October and November.  We are nearing the end of the competition and anxiously awaiting the results.  Rumor has it that one student reduced their energy bill by 1/2 during one of the months.  I am sure we will hear more as the competition comes to a close.
2. The club had a speaker come in on Thursday November 17th.  Mark Spears, a Senior Technical Consultant with WPS, talk with the club about pollution control.
3. The club helped ten families install weatherization materials to help others in the community reduce their energy bills.  The ten families were selected through the Volunteer Center of Green Bay.

Great Lakes Energy Education Center

The team at the Great Lakes Energy Education Center at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College has discussed hosting a blog for quite some time.  As a leader in energy related education, we have all had the experience of coming across some interesting information we would like to share on a broader scale.  This seems the best opportunity to do so.

To start us off, let me introduce you to the team at the Great Lakes Energy Education Center (GLEEC) at NWTC.
My name is Amy L. Kox and I have the honor of being the Associate Dean - Energy and Sustainability Programs.  I get to assist all of the fine instructors below to ensure that they have the resources they need to teach our students.
Chip Bircher, Energy Management Technology instructor
Jeff De Laune, Smart Grid Grant Coordinator

Jeff Gricar, Gas Utility Construction instructor

John Hippensteel, Solar Energy Technology instructor

Pete Mleziva, Electrical Power Distribution instructor

Dan Scheider, Electrical Power Distribution instructor

Jack Tribe, Gas Utility Construction instructor
John VanEss, Utilities Engineering Technology instructor
As you can see from the list above, we truly do have the distribution, generation and conservation energy programs covered. As you hear from the instructors listed above you will see that we truly have experts in the field teaching these programs.  We will all be contributing to this blog and hope you find use in the information we post.

Students in the Photovoltaic Advanced Class at Algoma High School installation