IREC is known for identifying difficult renewable energy issues, then bringing together the right team of technical and policy experts to produce innovative solutions.  Whether it’s education and outreach, stakeholder coordination, technical assistance, workforce development, the adoption and implementation of uniform guidelines and standards, or consumer protection, IREC’s diverse and talented team builds networks, shares experiences and produces exemplary materials through easy access information channels.

Tommy Cleveland

Tommy is a solar energy engineer at the North Carolina Solar Center. In this position,  Tommy leads the Center’s solar energy testing and demonstration program, provides technical support to stakeholders from across North Carolina and the nation, and works with other IREC team members on Solar America Board for Codes and Standards projects. Each spring, Tommy teaches the solar energy course in the mechanical and aerospace engineering department at NC State University. Tommy is licensed as a professional engineer in North Carolina and holds BS and MS degrees in mechanical engineering from North Carolina State University. In the first half of 2008, Tommy and his wife Kristin took time off of work to enjoy a five month trip around the world.

Maryteresa Colello

Maryteresa (MT) Colello has 20 years experience in the legal field, currently managing the law firm of O’Connor, O’Connor, Bresee & First in Albany, NY.  MT joined IREC in 1995 as bookeeper and meeting planner.  MT is IREC’s logistics guru, and if you’ve ever been to an IREC Annual Meeting, you can thank MT for her meticulous attention to detail that makes for memorable meetings. MT lives in Albany, and is a devoted Mets fan.

Laure-Jeanne Davignon

Laure-Jeanne serves as Deputy Project Director for IREC, assisting with the management and expansion of the IREC ISPQ Credentialing Program to serve the weatherization and energy efficiency retrofit communities. Her experience spans education and nonprofit management, first in higher education and recently as an association executive supporting the residential building supply industry.  During her association tenure, Laure-Jeanne worked to promote sustainable and energy efficient building practices to a 400+ company constituency spanning the northeastern US through education and outreach, including the inception of the industry’s first green building policy. She resides in rural upstate New York.

Diane DePuydt

Diane DePuydt, Ph.D. is a training and curriculum specialist with over 20 years experience in the fields of Sustainability and Renewable Energy who joined the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, Inc. in 2010 as a program consultant and Registered IREC ISPQ Assessor.   Most  recently, Dr. DePuydt served as Program Director at the Solar Living Institute, an  IREC ISPQ accredited training program in California, where she developed and implemented both traditional and online training in renewable energy and sustainable living.  Diane has also been Executive Director of energy-focused environmental organizations based in Cincinnati, OH and Gainesville, FL; coordinated accreditation processes at the University of Florida; and, taught environmental science at several small colleges in New England.

Kristen Ferguson

Kristen Ferguson is a Renewable Energy Consultant and an ISPQ Registered Assessor.  Ms. Ferguson began her career in renewable energy in 2005.  Ms. Ferguson most recently developed an ISPQ accredited solar training program in Massachusetts.  Additionally she has created training programs for technical sales representatives and educational seminars for consumers. Ms. Ferguson has a degree in Mechanical Engineering and has experience in instructional design, curriculum development and experiential education.  Prior to entering the renewable energy industry, she spent five years in the classroom teaching high school math in Baltimore and in West Africa. Ms. Ferguson currently resides in Massachusetts.

Kevin Fox

Kevin is a partner at the law firm Partner, Keyes & Fox, LLP which represents clients in state utility commission rulemakings related to renewable energy policy development and implementation, including work on net metering rules, interconnection standards, community solar programs, feed-in tariffs and incentive programs.  Kevin has developed a highly specialized practice that focuses on assisting clients with achieving regulatory goals and objectives, in particular energy market transformation efforts that facilitate growth in distributed energy resources.

Patricia Fox

Pat is currently the Director of Operations for the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, Inc..  In this role she is managing IREC’s workforce development initiatives and leading the IREC ISPQ Accreditation & Certification Programs.  Pat is an IREC ISPQ Registered Assessor and serving as a founding member and Chair of the Waltham Energy Action Committee for the City of Waltham, Massachusetts.  She has published articles and spoken nationally on credentialing of renewable energy and energy efficiency training providers and is the lead author for IREC’s Solar Licensing database.

Susan Geary

Susan came to IREC in the spring of 2011 after more than 20 years in the advancement, alumni affairs, and communications areas of secondary and post-secondary education. She has experience in print publication, website maintenance, and database management, as well as marketing and public relations, having helped develop and implement strategic and branded print and digital communications at private independent schools. Susan will serve as the administrative assistant for the Accreditation of Training Programs and Certification of Instructors Weatherization Assistance Program and Energy Efficiency Retrofit and is based in the Albany, NY, office.

Jason Keyes

Jason, partner at the law firm Keyes & Fox, LLP, focuses on regulatory matters related to interconnection of distributed generation, and has participated in interconnection and net metering rulemakings at the utility commissions of more than a dozen states.   Jason is also active in broader renewable energy regulatory affairs and industry analysis as board member of the American Solar Energy Society.  In his spare time, Jason has hiked more than 1,600 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail (Mexico-Canada)—final leg in 2020.

Mary Lawrence

Mary Lawrence is working as IREC’s Project Assistant for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Instructor Training Network. Mary just moved with her family to Upstate New York from Cape Cod, Massachusetts. For the eight years Mary lived on Cape Cod she worked for another federally funded grant program, AmeriCorps Cape Cod (ACC). ACC is a full-time, residential, service program that focuses its efforts on the natural resource management and disaster preparedness needs of the Cape Cod community. For her final three years with the program, Mary acted as Program Coordinator and worked with five other staff to run the program. Mary and her husband, Richard, are currently enjoying life as new parents to their son, George.

Barbara Martin, Ph.D

Barbara, former professor in the College of Education at the University of Central Florida and at Kent State University in educational technology and educational psychology, specializes in instructional design (ISD), criterion-referenced testing, evaluation strategies, distance education, and instructional theory. She has written articles on ISD and educational technology, including a book on designing instruction for affective behaviors.

Brian Mattiske

If you’ve applied for IREC ISPQ accreditation or certification, chances are you’ve met Brian.  Brian is the face on the other side ofmost IREC ISPQ candidate communications. He ensures smooth and timely processing of all applications for IREC’s ISPQ Credentialing Program. Brian also facilitates Award Committee Meetings and provides database information management services. The scope of his work involves all phases of IREC ISPQ awards, including maintenance. Brian is based in the Albany, NY, office.

Richard Michaud

Richard spent more than 30 years working for the U.S. Department of Energy in the Northeast Regional Office.  During that time, he administered the first cooperative agreements with the states that allowed them to hire staff for the fledgling state energy offices. He managed all of the major DOE grant programs as well as several national projects for the DOE and later took the lead on special projects to include the Million Solar Roofs and the Wind Powering America programs in order to establish them in the Region. He retired in June of 2006, just as DOE was closing the regional offices.  Currently, Richard is managing the solar hot water training across the U.S. for code inspectors and building officials.

Jane Pulaski

Jane is responsible for the communication and outreach tasks for IREC which includes the activities of DOE’s Solar Outreach Initiative (formerly Solar America initiative) through the IREC website and the monthly IREC Report (formerly the State & Stakeholder Newsletter).  Jane also edits the upcoming Solar Instructor Training Network (SITN) Quarterly, as well as the ISPQ monthly newsletter.  Before joining IREC, Jane was Program Manager for the Renewable Energy Program for SECO (1992-1999), where she planned, implemented and monitored renewable energy projects in Texas.  Jane, an enthusiastic consumer of technology, currently manages social media for IREC.  When she’s not on IREC’s various websites, she’s on her Yoga mat.  She lives in Austin.

Joseph Sarubbi

Joe Sarubbi has more than 35 years experience in education and the electrical industry.  He is a Professor, former Department Chair of the Building Systems Technology department, and served as Director of the Hudson Valley Apprenticeship Association for Hudson Valley Community College (HVCC).  Joe was the Executive Director of TEC-SMART, which is HVCC’s “Training and Education Center for Semi-Conductor Manufacturing and Alternative and Renewable Technologies. Joe is the new Project Manager for IREC as the National Administrator of U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Instructor Training Network.

Michael Sheehan P.E.

Michael represents IREC on state level rule-making and workshops.   In addition, he is the V.P. for Utility    Development for an energy efficiency company that sells electronic voltage regulators for both domestic and international utilities. Michael has extensive electric utility industry experience, especially in interconnections, distribution reliability, T&D Planning, efficiency, and optimization measures. He has worked for three utilities (Mid West, Southeast and Pacific Northwest IOU).  Michael was a member of the IEEE 1547 Standard for Interconnecting Distributed Resources with Electric Power Systems. He developed the System Operator training program and designed the qualifications test and certification procedures.    Mike is a registered Professional Engineer in the state of Washington and a graduate of the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Larry Sherwood

Larry is President of Sherwood Associates, a renewable energy consulting firm. Larry has nearly 30 years of experience in the renewable energy field. He is Project Administrator for the Solar America Board for Codes and Standards, Executive Director of the Small Wind Certification Council, author of the IREC Report, U.S. Solar Market Trends 2007, and Editor of the IREC Small Wind Newsletter.  Previously, Larry served as Executive Director of the American Solar Energy Society and Executive Director of the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College and lives in Boulder, Colorado with his wife, Janet and daughter, Morgan.

Louise Urgo

Louise Urgo joined the IREC team in 1997.  She is the Business Manager for IREC and is an IREC ISPQ Registered Assessor.  She was employed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Boston Office, and Denver Office as a Contracting Officer from 1975 to 1996, and also worked for the Golden Field Office.   She has a rich history of work on renewable energy and energy efficiency contracts, grants and programs and various energy technologies.  She lives in Brookline, Massachusetts, likes gardening and loves her Boston sports teams.

Laurel Varnado

Laurel is a Senior Renewables Analyst for Keyes & Fox LLP, located in Raleigh, NC. In that role, Laurel engages in research and analysis of net metering and interconnection regulatory trends and supports IREC’s  outreach and communication efforts. Prior to joining Keyes & Fox, Laurel was a policy analyst for the North Carolina Solar Center.  She holds a MA in Sustainable Development from the School for International Training and a BA in International Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 2009, Laurel was a Southeast Regional Network fellow for the Southeast Environmental Leadership Program and currently sits on Raleigh City Council’s Environmental Advisory Board. In her spare time, she is helping to start a non-profit urban farm in Raleigh and enjoys mountain biking.

Dr. Jerry Ventre

Jerry is a consultant in photovoltaic systems engineering, specializing in workforce development, system design and product assurance.  He received B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in aerospace engineering from the University of Cincinnati, and has over thirty-five years of experience in research, development, design and systems analysis.  In addition to leading the PV and distributed power programs at the Florida Solar Energy Center for over 20 years, Jerry was the first international chair of the Institute for Sustainable Power Awards Committee, managed the development of the original NABCEP task analysis and study guide for PV system installation, and was recently appointed chair of a committee to review and improve the NABCEP PV entry level program.  He has taught at both graduate and undergraduate levels, including PV systems, and has been heavily involved in workforce development. He has offered eight train-the-trainer workshops around the country, assisting faculty in course and program development.  Jerry has been a recipient of a number of awards for contributions to engineering and engineering education.  He has over 150 technical publications to his credit and is co-author with Roger Messenger of the highly regarded text entitled Photovoltaic Systems Engineering.

Joe Wiedman

Joe, partner at Keyes & Fox LLP, represents the firm’s clients before regulatory commissions nationwide with a particular focus on establishing state programs and policies that expand markets for distributed generation including net metering rules, interconnection procedures, and ownership of renewable energy systems by third-parties.  Joe has worked on a broad range of matters including establishment and implementation of the California Solar Initiative, energy efficiency, greenhouse gas emissions regulation, and general rate cases, and transmission line siting and approval applications.

Jane Weissman, Executive Director

Jane has been the Executive Director of the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, Inc. since 1994.  From 1985 until 1991, she was the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Photovoltaic Center.  Jane is Vice Chair of the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners and was elected an America Solar Energy Society’s Fellow in 2004.  She has been chairing the national Clean Energy Workforce Education Conference since 2006.  She has been invited by the Congress of the United States to provide expert testimony before the Subcommittee on Energy and Environment to discuss workforce development and training issues.  In May 2010, Jane received the prestigious Charles Greeley Abbot Award from the American Solar Energy Society.  And in 2012, Jane received the Renewable Energy World’s Leadership Award in policy.  She has published papers and spoken widely on topics in the field of renewable energy, photovoltaics, public policy and credentialing.  Jane is based out of Boston, Massachusetts and is an avid Red Sox fan.

The DSIRE Team

Justin Barnes

Justin is a policy analyst at the North Carolina Solar.  He has worked at the N.C. Solar Center since 2007.  His work includes researching state, local and utility incentives and policies for DSIRE, with a regional focus on the Northeast, South Central, Midwest, and Mid-Atlantic.  He is the project coordinator for the DSIRE Quantitative Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) Dataset, a separate database maintained for the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) and Department of Energy (DOE) for use in their electricity modeling and forecasting analyses.  Justin also fields requests for information and technical assistance from the general public, government officials, media, and the energy industry on a wide range of subjects related to renewable energy incentives and markets.  He also presents at various regional and national conferences on solar policy.

Chelsea Conover

Chelsea Conover is a policy analyst with the Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE) at the North Carolina Solar Center. She has worked at the Solar Center since August 2008. She currently focuses on incentives and policies in the Midwest and the Southeast. Chelsea also helps to manage the Bioenergy Internship and Fellowship Program at the Solar Center. Previously, Chelsea worked on nuclear policy analysis at Oak Ridge Associated Universities. She received a Master of Environmental Management from the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University and her Bachelor of Arts from The College of Wooster.

Joseph R. (Rusty) Haynes

Rusty is the project manager for the Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency (DSIRE) at the North Carolina Solar Center. He has worked at the N.C. Solar Center since 2001 and is a past editor of the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, Inc.’s (IREC) Connecting to the Grid newsletter. Rusty frequently delivers presentations on renewable-energy policy at national and regional conferences. He provides technical assistance to federal, state and local government representatives and assists consumers, businesses, media representatives, advocacy groups, non-profit organizations and other stakeholders with understanding data and trends in renewable energy and energy efficiency policies. Mr. Haynes writes and edits national reports related to state-level renewable-energy policy issues. He presented and moderated at the 2008 Solar America Cities annual conference, and attended the 2009 Solar America Cities conference to coordinate with and learn from local government representatives. He has also met with representatives from the U.S. Department of Energy and other stakeholders to help develop strategies and priorities for the Solar America Cities program.

Amy Heinemann

Amy is a policy analyst for the North Carolina Solar Center.  She has worked at the N.C. Solar Center since January  2009.  Her work includes researching state, local and utility incentives and policies for DSIRE, with a regional focus on the Southeast, West, and Northwest.  She is the project coordinator for the DSIRE Quantitative Incentives Dataset, a separate database maintained for the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) and Department of Energy (DOE) for use in financial modeling and analysis. Ms. Heinemann fields requests for information and provides technical assistance to the general public, government officials, media, and the energy industry on a wide range of topics related to renewable energy incentives and markets.  She also presents at various regional conferences on solar policy and contributes to ongoing research and editing of DSIRE Solar Policy Guide.

Brian Lips

Brian Lips has worked for the North Carolina Solar Center since 2006 and began working on DSIREusa.org as a Policy Analyst in 2007.  His current work involves researching and summarizing  policies and incentives adopted by seven western states and North Carolina.  Brian also serves North Carolina businesses, consumers and government officials by serving as a public contact for questions related to North Carolina’s tax credit and other policies and incentives adopted by the state.  Prior to joining The North Carolina Solar Center, Brian worked for Progress Energy in Raleigh, NC as a software contracts manager.

Amanda Vanega

Amanda joined the N.C. Solar Center as a policy analyst for DSIRE in October 2008. She researches state, local, and utility incentives and policies that enable development of renewable energy and energy efficiency. Prior to joining the Solar Center, Amanda worked as a research analyst for a private recycling firm. She also spent several years in Nicaragua as an environmental education specialist with the U.S. Peace Corps, and later working with non-profit organizations. She received her Master of Environmental Management from the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University, and her Bachelor’s degree from Indiana University.