By Monica Brummer, Director of the Pacific NW Center of Excellence for Clean Energy
One of the most difficult moments I’ve faced has been sharing news with our staff, advisory board members, supporters, and champions that the Center of Excellence is closing. Yet even harder will be walking out the door for the final time on June 30 knowing that the work we’ve been so deeply committed to still needs to be done.
Saying goodbye to this work won’t be easy, especially because we have been your champion for the energy workforce sector. From Smart Grid to hydrogen to supporting utilities during the clean energy initiatives, we’ve been in the middle sharing news, celebrating successes, supporting students, and helping address workforce challenges.
We are deeply grateful for the opportunities we’ve had to learn, contribute, and grow. Every step, every project, and every connection have been meaningful and have helped shape the impact we’ve made together.
As we close the Center, our focus is on leaving you in the best possible hands: first, by expressing our sincere gratitude and acknowledging our partners; next, by strengthening connections across this community; and finally, by sharing resources so you can continue forward as champions of this important work.
Our Sincere Gratitude
Our Center began in 2004 and was led by Mark Johnson (2004 – 2005), Barbara Hins-Turner (2005 – 2019), William Westmoreland (2020), and me, Monica Brummer, (2021 – 2026). We worked closely with energy industry, organized labor, new technology, non-government organizations, and K-20 education partners. We stayed current on the state’s initiatives that are driving our power generators and users toward a zero-emission economy. We represented our partner’s interests and made connections to those involved with training and upskilling our state’s workforce.
We convened industry and labor to help drive workforce development initiatives; and coordinated community college resources after industry and labor set the direction.
We invested in SEI Climate/Energy Fellows who piloted first-time programs that assisted building owners, utilities and educators with building compliance issues and energy career awareness.
Our work was accomplished utilizing amazing partnerships. We’d like to offer our sincerest gratitude to all utilities within our region and to those partnerships that were supported by the following companies:
| Air Liquide/Kalama Avista Utilities Benton PUD Bonneville Power Administration Bonneville Environmental Foundation CATES (Zero-Carbon Transportation) Capital STEM Alliance Career Connect Washington Center for Energy Workforce Development Center for Hydrogen Safety Centralia City Light Centralia College Centralia School District & Rob McKay Chehalis-Centralia Airport Chelan County PUD Clark PUD CleanTech Alliance Cowlitz County PUD CETWAC Douglas County PUD Economic Alliance of Lewis County Energy Northwest Fortescue Future Industries Foundation for Water & Energy Education (FWEE) Grant County PUD Gonzaga University Grays Harbor PUD H2Skills Educators & Committees IBEW Local 77 Lewis County PUD Lewis County Transit National Laboratory of the Rockies (formerly NREL) | National Science Foundation/NSF grants NW Indian College NWPPA PNWH2 Pacific County PUD PacMtn Workforce Development Council Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Portland General Electric Portland State University/Powerize Puget Sound Energy Renewable Hydrogen Alliance REVIT education/training committee San Juan College/School of Energy Seattle City Light Strategic Energy Innovations (SEI) Snohomish PUD SBCTC – all 34 community and technical colleges Tacoma Public Utilities/Tacoma Power Thurston County WorkSource TransAlta UA Local 26 Plumbers & Pipefitters University of Washington U.S. Army Corps of Engineers U.S. Departments of Energy, Ecology & Labor U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell & Patty Murray Wahkiakum County PUD Washington Dept. of Commerce Washington State Centers of Excellence Washington State University/Energy Program Washington State University/Tri Cities Washington State Labor Council Washington Workforce Training & Education Board |
Strengthening Community Partnerships & Offering Resources
During the last few months, we have organized opportunities for educators and industry partners to meet and build partnerships. Our final meeting brought our state’s utility trainers together to discuss how to continue troubleshooting issues and sharing best practices.
Energizing Resources
Our website hosts an electrifying amount of information that will be available through November 2026. We helped identify what is needed to perform critical work functions, key activities, performance indicators and knowledge, skills, and abilities an individual needs to succeed in high-wage energy-related occupations. The following companies are energy champions that offer a conduit of resources:
Center for Energy Workforce Development (CEWD) – Free Energy Industry Fundamentals 2.0 online education for students and teachers; and careers in energy workforce material templates.
Center for Hydrogen Safety – Hydrogen safety experts, events, online courses, and free hydrogen safety courses for first responders.
CleanTech Alliance – News, trends, new technologies, events, networking and learning.
Net Zero Northwest – Workforce labor market information for the region.
National Laboratory of the Rockies (formerly NREL) – Workforce pathways & Energy Executives Academy
Renewable Hydrogen Alliance – Hydrogen focused collaboration, events, workforce support, and Women+ in Hydrogen (national LinkedIn group and event).
Washington Dept of Commerce/energy and workforce policies – Washington state clean energy initiatives and compliance offices.
WSU Energy Program – green transportation/EV training, building efficiency, energy storage and more. Staff provides unmatched energy services, products, education and information.
WSU Institute for NW Energy Futures – located in the Tri Cities, INEF serves as a virtual hub that focuses on future energy technology solutions. They identify pressing research questions, pursue collaborative solutions and educate the next generation of energy leaders.
The energy industry will continue experiencing immense changes that will bring a substantial number of jobs to Washington state. It needs engineers, electricians, constructors, thinkers, tinkers, and technicians to support electric power generation; on/off-grid storage; and alternative transportation technologies. Utilities will move into a zero-emission, clean energy economy and they need the support of our resources and training partners.
Lastly, look for events, such as PNWER, PNNL/WSU’s Advanced Grid Institute (AGI) Day, Energy NW’s annual power event, and events supported by our partners listed above. These opportunities offer connections and information about the state’s power systems.
As the Center closes, please know that we will continue to hold this industry and its workers near to our hearts, and will continue to follow and share industry news as our utilities move into a zero-carbon economy on LinkedIn.