Ken Walz

Dr. Kenneth Walz has taught science, engineering, and renewable energy at Madison Area Technical College since 2003, where he serves as the Director of the CREATE Energy Center funded by the National Science Foundation. 

Joel Shoemaker

Joel Shoemaker is a Wisconsin state-certified Master Electrician with over 12 years of experience with photovoltaic systems. 

Scott Liddicoat

Scott Liddicoat just retired from teaching for the last 30 years at Green Bay Southwest High School. In the last decade he taught a high school class for college credit on energy conservation and renewable energy. During this time he has also been employed as a classroom lesson writer, curriculum manager, and teacher trainer by the National Science Foundation (Center for Renewable Energy Advanced Technological Education, 5 years). 

Jim Reichling

As a dual credit energy instructor for the Madison Metropolitan School District, in Madison, WI, Jim Reichling teaches students about energy and practical skills applicable to real world jobs in the industry.

Jim’s interest in energy dates back to his days growing up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin. He was fascinated by the science behind the energy required for farm machinery and operating equipment and by the use of techniques like crop rotation to better produce feed for livestock. His curiosity resulted in a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry Education and a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering with a focus on hybrid power systems. Mr. Reichling has spent the past 25 years teaching high school chemistry and physics to the future generations of energy professionals.

Liz Reinke

Liz has been teaching physics and engineering courses at Madison College since 2008. In addition to teaching, she serves as an academic advisor for engineering transfer students. Liz joined the CREATE team in July 2022 and she is excited to help students pursue paths in renewable energy. 

Cris Folk

Cris began teaching in 1982 for the U.S. Navy and has provided training ever since. He teaches PV and wind courses at the MREA, is an ISPQ Certified PV Instructor and has installation experience with solar thermal and photovoltaic systems. 

Claudette Mehrhoff is the Compliance Coordinator for the Center for Renewable Energy Advanced Technological Education (CREATE), employed by the lead institution for this project, Madison Area Technical College. She has fifteen years of grant management experience while managing and supporting several multi-million dollar state and federal grants. Claudette has spent the last seven years supporting the CREATE grants ensuring the grant’s activities and expenditures are allowable while following internal and external rules and regulations, including subaward monitoring to the grant’s subaward partners. She has served as the budget manager for the CREATE grants for the past three years. Claudette is a certified grants manager, certification through Management Concepts, and holds a bachelors degree in Leadership and Organizational Studies from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh.

Samantha Howk is the Administrative Coordinator for CREATE at Madison College. She earned a B.A. in German and a B.S. in Business Administration at Ohio State University and started her career in the private sector. She got her start in renewable energy in 2022 working for a residential solar installer and continues to serve on 2 boards of solar-related nonprofits. She joined the CREATE team in 2024 and is excited to support renewable energy education and the next generation of solar industry professionals. 

Nick Matthes

Nick is the Solar Project Manager for the MREA. He works in a variety of capacities across training programs, performing courses and curriculum development along with working on the Solar Corps and Solar on Schools initiatives. He has been teaching the whole range of curriculum for over ten years and especially enjoys the advanced level hands-on courses.

Nick is a NABCEP certified PV Installation Professional with WI master electrician and commercial electrical inspector licenses, and has a passion for making electricity from sunlight.

Chris Miller didn’t spend his whole school career training to become a teacher, although he admits he always wanted to be one. Instead, he spent a lot of his young life (“A past life,” he says with a chuckle) working as an automotive technician for General Motors. But making window and door lock switches just wasn’t cutting it for him.

“I always thought about wanting to be a teacher, and one day, I just decided that was it. I’m going to be a teacher,” he says — and he didn’t waste any time. 

Chris is the Program Coordinator and Professor of Electronics, Industrial Maintenance, Mechatronics, and Renewable Energy at Heartland Community College.