Student Innovation Board

The undergraduate and graduate students of today will become the future workforce and thought leaders the power industry needs to address the energy challenges associated with the exponential growth in distributed resources. Applying fresh approaches and unfettered creative thinking by students to power engineering problem solutions will prove immensely beneficial to utilities, supporting industry, and consumers. In addition, more students may choose to pursue careers in power systems engineering, distributed technologies, and related fields associated with the evolving smart grid, thus helping to address anticipated shortages in the electric power industry workforce.

Role of GridEd Student Innovation Board (SIB):

  • Advisory to GridEd;
    • Participate in planning, evaluation and assessment activities of GridEd objectives, research, development, analytical capability, curriculum and academic program development, course availability, and quality improvement options;
  • Communication liaison between GridEd students and student organizations on campus;
  • Advocacy and promotion of student participation in GridEd activities;
    • These activities may include GridEd senior design competitions, multidisciplinary engineering projects, graduate and undergraduate research projects, paper and/or poster presentations at technical and professional society meetings.

Responsibilities of GridEd SIB:

  • Develop a GridEd SIB mission statement, charter, and operating plan;
  • Attend and actively participate in GridEd activities and advisory board meetings;
  • Disseminate GridEd news among appropriate student organizations;
  • Promote and encourage innovation and participation in GridEd supported activities (e.g. research projects, courses and seminars);
  • Promote and encourage dissemination of GridEd supported activities and their products (e.g. presentations, posters, papers).

GridEd-East Student Innovation Board

Mehrdad Biglarbegian

University of North Carolina at Charlotte
PHD Electrical Engineering - Power Electronics
Hometown: Charlotte, NC
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Zachary Gallagher

Syracuse University
M.S. Electrical Engineering
Hometown: Syracuse, NY
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Kaylee Graham

University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Electrical Engineering – Power and Electrical Systems
Hometown: Harrisburg, NC
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Rodrigo Hernandez

The University of Texas at San Antonio
M.S. Electrical Engineering
Hometown: Fort Worth, TX
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Carolyn Majane

Georgia Institute of Technology
Electrical Engineering
Hometown: Germantown, MD
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Matin Meskin, Secratary

University of Buffalo, The State University of New York
Ph. D, Electrical Engineering
Hometown: Buffalo, NY
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Mohammad Mohebbi

University of Louisville
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Hometown: Louisville, KY
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Mohammad Nikkhah Mojdehi

Syracuse University
Electrical Engineering
Hometown: Syracuse, NY
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Kyle Nadolinski

SUNY Buffalo State College
Electrical Engineering Technology: Smart Grid
Hometown: Buffalo, NY
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Connor Raymond

Clarkson University
Electrical Engineering
Hometown: Bloomingburg, NY
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Morteza Rezaee, Chair

Georgia Institute of Technology
PHD
Hometown: Atlanta, GA
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George Vellaringattu, Vice-Chair

Georgia Institute of Technology
Electrical Engineering
Hometown: Raleigh, NC
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GridEd-West Student Innovation Board

Sohom Datta

Arizona State University
PhD in Electrical Engineering (Power Systems)
Hometown: Tempe, AZ
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Michael Davis

Portland State University
Master of Electrical Engineering
Hometown: Beaverton, OR
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Ian Dudley

Washington State University
Power Engineering
Hometown: Bremerton, WA
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Brian Eggers

Washington State University
Electrical Engineering
Hometown: Snohomish, WA
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Crystal Eppinger

Portland State University
Masters of Electrical Engineering: Power Systems
Hometown: Seattle, WA
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Yuanqi Gao

University of California, Riverside
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Hometown: Hohhot, Nei Mongol
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Jennifer Lee

University of California, Irvine
Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department
Hometown: Cypress, CA
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Laura Novoa

University of California, Irvine
Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering
Hometown: Sao Paulo, Brazil
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Phil Swisher

Western Washington University
Electrical Engineering, Energy Focus
Hometown: Boulder, CO
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Scott Zuloaga

Arizona State University
PhD. - Electric Power and Energy Systems
Hometown: Thousand Oaks, CA
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Mehrdad Biglarbegian
University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with PhD in Electrical Engineering in May 2019
  • Focus in high frequency wide bandgap power electronics converters
Career Goals
  • Apply my expertise and knowledge obtained from the industry and university collaboration for R&D section of renewable energy sources further
Student Organization
  • Senior member of GEARED student
  • IEEE student chapter member
Social Media Email: mbiglarb@uncc.edu

Zachary Gallagher
Syracuse University

Academic Goals

  • Graduate from Master's Program spring of 2015
  • Possible PhD
  • Utilize my knowledge of smart grid and renewable energy resources in the utility industry.
Career Goals
  • Work in the utility industry and help modernize the grid for the 21st century and include renewable energy resources in the power grid.
Student Organizations
  • Syracuse University Veterans
  • Green Program Alumni Network
Social Media Email: Zsgallag@syr.edu

Kaylee Graham
University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Academic Goals

  • Complete my Bachelor's degree with my chosen concentration of Power and Energy Systems
  • To be accepted to the early entry Master's program and complete my Master's degree in Electrical Engineering
Career Goals
  • To be employed full time with the major utility company that I currently intern
  • To work mostly with the generation and transmission of power
Student Organizations
  • Member of the GEARED student Innovation Board
  • UNCC EPIC Power and Energy Society Member
  • UNCC Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Student Lead Ambassador
Email: kgraha45@uncc.edu

Rodrigo Hernandez
The University of Texas at San Antonio

Academic Goals

  • Complete MSEE program in spring or summer 2016
Career Goals
  • Use my skills in engineering in a company with a national presence where I can develop myself as an Electrical Engineer
Student Organizations
  • IEEE
Email: rodrigo.hernandez@utsa.edu

Mohammad Nikkhah Mojdehi
Syracuse University

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with PhD by May 2015.
  • Develop a new guideline for utilities to evaluate the risk of islanding of interconnected DGs.
  • Design new framework to engage EVs and energy storages in provision of ancillary services such as voltage and frequency regulations.
Career Goals
  • Apply the risk of islanding guideline for utilities facing DGs interconnection requests and also using it as a platform to study other aspects of DGs interconnection such as voltage flicker.
  • Design a business model to incorporate aggregated EVs and energy storages in ISO market structures for ancillary services.
Student Organizations
  • IEEE
Email: mnikkhah@syr.edu

Connor Raymond
Georgia Institute of Technology

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering in December 2015.
  • Graduate with a minor in Mathematics and a concentration in Power Engineering.
Career Goals
  • Utilize my Clarkson University education to develop solutions to the problems that hinder the growth and application of modern grid technologies.
Student Organizations
  • Clarkson University SCORE President
  • Member of the GEARED Student Innovation Board representing Clarkson University
Email: raymoncs@clarkson.edu

Morteza Rezaee
Georgia Institute of Technology

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with a PhD in Electrical Engineering in May 2018
  • Publish my research in highly-ranked journals and conferences
  • Focus on Smart Grid concepts
Career Goals
  • Enhance the awareness and application of newly-developed technologies in power systems
Student Organizations
  • Senior Member of the GEARED Student Innovation Board representing Georgia Institute of Technology
  • IEEE Student Chapter Member
Email: mrezaee@gatech.edu


Matin Meskin
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with a PhD in February 2017
  • Establish a Smart Grid Testbed
  • Application of PMU for Wide Area Monitoring, Protection and Control (WAMPAC)
Career Goals
  • Apply my knowledge and skills to the state-of-the-art topics in an R&D company.
Student Organizations
  • University at Buffalo IEEE Student Chapter

Email: matinmes@buffalo.edu

Social Media:


Kyle Nadolinski
SUNY Buffalo State College

Academic Goals

  • Continue to learn about power generation, transmission, distribution, protective devises and renewables.
  • Incorporate tools such as ETAP and work in the Smart Grid Lab to perform simulation experiments.
  • Gain hands on experience in modern protective devises.
Career Goals
  • Graduate with a degree from SUNY Buffalo State College and use skills to solve problems in a complex and changing power environment.
Student Organizations
  • Opportunity Research Scholars Program
  • Women in Electrical and Computer Engineering

Email: Nadoliko01@mail.buffalostate.edu

George Vellaringattu
Georgia Institute of Technology

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering in May 2016 and pursue an M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering
Career Goals
  • Gain a full-time position in preferably the electrical energy field and pursue a professional engineer license
Student Organizations
  • Opportunity Research Scholar in the School of ECE at Georgia Tech
  • Resident Adviser for First-Year Undergraduate Students
  • Residence Hall Association Staff Representative
Social Media Email: gjvellar@gatech.edu


Tyrone Medina Vélez
University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with an M.E. in Electrical Engineering by December 2015
Student Organizations
  • President of the Tau Beta Pi - Puerto Rico Alpha Chapter
  • Golden Key Honor Society member
Email: tyrone.medina@upr.edu


Mohammad Mohebbi
University of Louisville

Academic Goals

  • Design, evaluation and implementation of advanced control techniques for the control of power systems and power electronic interfaces.
  • Focus on smart grid and grid modernization concepts
Career Goals
  • Apply the advanced and robust concepts of control theories on the control of power and power electronic systems.
  • Utilize my knowledge of power, power electronic, control and telecommunication systems in the utility industry.
Student Organizations
  • Member of the GEARED student Innovation Board representing University of Louisville
  • IEEE Student Chapter Member
  • Member of International Society of Automation (ISA)
  • Member of Kentucky Academy of Science (KAS)
Email: m0mohe01@louisville.edu


Ben Shannon
Washington State University

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with B.S. in Electrical Engineering with an emphasis in power systems.
  • Possibly continue to pursue Masters in E.E. with emphasis in either renewable energy or Smart Grid systems.
Career Goals
  • Use my education to put myself in a situation where I am contributing to the modernization of the power systems industry.
Student Organizations
  • WSU IEEE Student Chapter – President
  • Member of the GEARED Student Innovation Board representing WSU
Email: benjamin.shannon@wsu.edu


Chris Knox
Washington State University

Academic Goals

  • Earn a degree in Electrical Engineering and learn as much as I can about engineering principals and power systems.
  • I want to do this while continuing to participate in the WSU music department as a trumpet player
Career Goals
  • I want to use a degree in Electrical Engineering to obtain and succeed in a career in the power industry.
Student Organizations
  • IEEE, IEEE PES, National Society of Collegiate Scholars
Email: Christopher.knox@wsu.edu


Brendan Shaffer
University of California, Irvine

Academic Goals

  • Energy system modeling to address the engineering problem of low carbon energy supply for deep carbon emission reductions to mitigate climate change.
Career Goals
  • Work for an organization with a set of goals that includes addressing environmental issues particularly climate change.
Email: bps@apep.uci.edu

Social Media: https://www.linkedin.com/in/

Crystal Eppinger
Portland State University

Academic Goals

  • Earn a PhD
Career Goals
  • Obtain a research position at a national lab
Student Organizations
  • IEEE PES
Email: crystal.eppinger@pdx.edu


Brian Eggers
Washington State University

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering, with an emphasis on Computer Engineering
Career Goals
  • To find a career that uses my skills to benefit others.
Student Organizations
  • Student Innovation Board
  • Robotics Club
Email: bgeggers@msn.com


Jennifer Lee
University of California, Irvine

Academic Goals

  • M.S. Degree in Mechanical Engineering in June 2018
  • Focus on distributed energy resources and its integration in the grid
Career Goals
  • Apply the knowledge and skills gained at the Advanced Power and Energy Program to address the challenges with maintaining a sustainable environment in regards with power and energy
Student Organizations
  • AEE SoCal – Student Chapter
Email: jjl@apep.uci.edu


Laura Novoa
University of California, Irvine

Academic Goals

  • As a graduate student researcher in the energy field, my goal is to provide answers to current challenges regarding renewable energy integration into the electrical power grid. Thus, in the course of my Ph.D. program I hope to make a meaningful contribution towards making our current grid more renewable.
Career Goals
  • My goals as a professional in the energy field is to be able to apply my knowledge in a way that there is a visible positive affect, both social and environmental, in the community we live in.
Student Organizations
  • AEE SoCal – Student Chapter
Email: ldn@apep.uci.edu

Social Media: http://www.lauranovoa.net


Scott Zuloaga
Arizona State University

Academic Goals

  • Along the way to completing my PhD, I would like to make a meaningful contribution to the area of study involving the water-energy nexus
Career Goals
  • To fully apply my knowledge, analysis skills and programming ability to the benefit of the U.S. Electric Power Industry; to obtain PE Licensure; and, to help to generate more student interest in the area of electric power engineering
Student Organizations
  • IEEE Student Chapter, Current Co-Chair of IEEE PES ASU Student Chapter
Email: szuloaga@asu.edu


Michael Davis
Portland State University

Academic Goals

  • Further develop my ability to apply both analysis and synthesis in engineering problem solving.
Career Goals
  • Work to help develop a more robust US power grid that includes distributed generation and micro grids.
Student Organizations
  • IEEE Power and Engineering Society
Email: mrd3@pdx.edu


Ian Dudley
Washington State University

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with a master's degree in power engineering
Career Goals
  • To pursue a career that challenges me
Student Organizations
  • IEEE
  • Student Innovation Board
  • Undergraduate Research, Honor's Society
Email: Ian.Dudley@wsu.edu


Yuanqi Gao
University of California, Riverside

Academic Goals

  • Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical Engineering
Career Goals
  • Power System Engineer.
Student Organizations
  • IEEE Student Chapter
Email: ygao024@ucr.edu


Sohom Datta
Arizona State University

Academic Goals

  • Graduate with PhD in Electrical Engineering (Power Systems) by May 2017.
  • Develop risk-based standards for dynamic security assessment of the future grid with high penetration of renewable resources.
Career Goals
  • Work in a research-intensive position in the power industry to provide innovation solutions towards electric grid modernization: Develop standards for dynamic security assessment and reliable operation of the future electricity grid with high penetration of renewable generation.
  • Develop standardized frameworks for advanced data analytics in the Smart Grid using modern data analytics and machine learning algorithms
Student Organizations
  • IEEE PES ASU Student Chapter Member, Ex Co-Vice Chair of IEEE PES ASU Student Chapter, IEEE Student Member, IEEE Power & Energy Society Member, IEEE Smart Grid Community Member, IEEE Big Data Community Member, IEEE Internet of Things Community Member, IEEE Young Professionals Member, IEEE Entrepreneurship Exchange Community Member, PSERC Student Member
Email: Sohom.datta@asu.edu

Social Media: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sohomdatta


Carolyn Majane
Georgia Institute of Technology

Academic Goals

  • Graduate in 2020 with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering
Career Goals
  • To pursue a career in electrical and power engineering
Student Organizations
  • Opportunity Research Scholars Program
  • Women in Electrical and Computer Engineering
Email: c.r.majane@gatech.edu


Phil Swisher
Western Washington University

Academic Goals

  • To acquire a knowledge tool belt that will help me accomplish my career goals.
Career Goals
  • To be an innovative leader in the energy field working on accelerating the transition from fossil fuels to sustainable fuels.
Student Organizations
  • Campus Factory WWU
Email: Philip.Swisher@gmail.com


Phil Swisher
Western Washington University

Academic Goals

  • To acquire a knowledge tool belt that will help me accomplish my career goals.
Career Goals
  • To be an innovative leader in the energy field working on accelerating the transition from fossil fuels to sustainable fuels.
Student Organizations
  • Campus Factory WWU
Email: Philip.Swisher@gmail.com