MREA Instructors are hired on an as-needed basis as part-time temporary employees of the organization. The MREA brings in new instructors as demand for training increases or new regional markets for training open.
Interested in Becoming an MREA Instructor?
Alex Jarvis
President, Solar Systems of Indiana, Inc. | Bloomington, IN
Alex Jarvis has been working in the renewable energy (RE) field since 2006. He has been an instructor for the…
Ali Dirul
Founder & CEO - Ryter Cooperative Industries
With more than 15 years of power system design engineering experience, Ali Dirul is a clean energy visionary, innovator, and…
Clay Sterling
Assistant Professor, Kankakee Community College
Clay is currently an associate professor for electrical engineering technology and renewable energy at Kankakee Community College in Kankakee IL.…
Cris Folk
Instructor
Cris began teaching in 1982 for the U.S. Navy and has provided training ever since. He has been employed by…
Dan Fink
Buckville Energy Consulting - Masonville, CO
Dan Fink has lived 11 miles off the grid, high in the Colorado mountains, since 1991. He has been teaching…
Jenny Heinzen
MREA Training Director
Email: jennyh@midwestrenew.org Phone: 751-900-2109 Jenny’s been a full-time employee since 2013 but has been an MREA “regular” since attending her first…
Joaquin Thomas is the owner of Go Solar Construction LLC and Go Solar Education LLC. He is a Master Electrician…
Kris Schmid
Legacy Solar, LLC
Kris Schmid is the founder and owner of Legacy Solar, LLC, a solar energy company that has been designing and…
Matt Parks
Instructor, City of Madison
Matt teaches Intermediate PV, and PV Design and Installation Lab for the MREA. He also teaches in the Electrical Apprenticeship…
Mike Joyce
Instructor, Project Engineer, Full Spectrum Solar
Mike is currently a PV Project Engineer for Full Spectrum Solar in Madison, WI, where he designs and manages both residential and…
Nick Matthes
MREA Solar Project Manager
Email: matthes@midwestrenew.org Nick is the Solar Project Manager for the MREA. He works in a variety of capacities across our…
Paul Gilman is a technical writer and trainer and has worked on projects for NREL and other clients since 2002.…
While earning his Bachelor of Science in Materials Science (Minnesota, 1989), Ralph developed a strong interest in photovoltaics. He decided…
Instructor Application Process
The MREA does not discriminate on the basis of age, ancestry, color, creed, disability, marital status, military status, mental or physical disability, source of income, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or any other class protected by law in providing education services or in hiring qualified instructors.
Individuals who are interested in applying to become an MREA instructor must complete the Instructor Application. No individual will be hired as an instructor unless he or she has completed the application. Applications may be submitted to the MREA for consideration, and the final determination regarding the proposed applicant will be based on MREA’s need for instructors and each individual’s qualifications. Approval is made based on recommendations by a committee consisting of current MREA staff, and final approval is made by the MREA Leadership Team. Once an applicant is approved, the training team will develop a training/co-teaching/auditing schedule based on their level of education and experience.
Instructor Training Process
Prospective Instructors approved by the MREA Leadership Team can begin attending free online training right away. Once they complete the online courses, the training team will schedule them to observe in-person training, and finally to co-teach. All instructors, regardless of experience or credential, are required to fully attend and complete any MREA course(s) they plan to teach. They must additionally co-teach (in full) any course(s) they plan to teach. The training and co-teaching process can take up to a year to complete based on co-teaching opportunities.
Questions: contact us at courses@midwestrenew.org
