Staff Directory

Curtis Bird works at CEE as a senior energy auditor. Before joining CEE and the Home Energy Squad, Curtis was a research assistant for the City of Oberlin, Ohio, helping plan for the adoption of electric vehicles. Curtis holds a BA in Environmental Studies with a concentration in urban sustainability from Oberlin College.

Hunter joined CEE in 2019 as an energy counselor and quickly advanced his career through various roles including energy auditor, field supervisor, and now field operations manager. In his current role, he manages all aspects of field work including home visit protocols, product ordering and tracking, field staff training, customer complaint resolution, hiring, and much more.

Hunter is focused on staff development and retention while working to build on our diverse and stimulating work culture. Prior to his time at CEE, Hunter attended the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities campus where he majored in both political science and history. 

As the business systems analyst, Jenny is responsible for supporting CEE’s information technology department by providing internal support for all programs and applications used by the Lending Center.

Dave Bohac works at CEE as a senior research engineer. He has directed a variety of applied research and program development projects. He has more than 30 years’ experience in energy efficiency and indoor air quality with an emphasis on advanced diagnostics and monitoring methods. He is the principal investigator for Minnesota Department of Commerce-funded projects to evaluate the energy savings of reducing duct leakage in commercial buildings and multifamily building ventilation improvements. He conducts whole building air leakage tests on large commercial, large residential, and recreation buildings. He uses air leakage tests, pressure diagnostics, and IR scans to help identify and correct building pressure and air leakage issues in CEE’s commercial building recommissioning projects. He was the CEE project lead for an ASHRAE field research project to measure air leakage in mid- and high-rise non-residential buildings. He is also the principal investigator for a Minnesota Department of Commerce-funded project to develop diagnostic procedures, cost estimate guidelines, and energy savings calculation methods for air leakage reductions in commercial and institutional buildings.

Dave is assisting with DOE NorthernSTAR Building America funded laboratory and field tests to determine energy savings and identify opportunities to enhance DHW/space heating combination system performance. He serves as technical advisor for CEE’s residential energy efficiency programs and Community Energy Services Program. His previous energy-related research includes zone pressure diagnostic protocols for weatherization, energy penalty and interior moisture effects of radon mitigation systems, installed performance of gas engine driven heat pumps, ice arena energy improvements, commercial water heater integral flue damper savings, commercial boiler off-cycle loss/seasonal efficiency, and commercial building lighting code compliance.

Dave’s indoor air quality (IAQ) research has included a comprehensive assessment of the health risks associated with secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure in Minnesota bars and restaurants, measured SHS exposure at outdoor patios, and methods to reduce SHS migration in multifamily buildings. He assisted with field measurements of SHS constituents in a sample of 100 apartments. He has also conducted a research project for the National Institute of Standards and Technology focused on strategies to reduce the transfer of airborne infectious diseases in hospitals. Dave was the manager of CEE’s Indoor Air Quality group for the Minneapolis–St. Paul Residential Sound Insulation Program that conducted IAQ tests and remediation on over 7,500 single-family houses and hundreds of multifamily units. Test results were analyzed to produce a report on combustion safety, house air leakage, and ventilation trends. He has also overseen the development and implementation of IAQ policies and procedures for eight other sound insulation programs located across the United States.

Dave has worked at CEE since 1988. He holds an MSE from Princeton University and a BS in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Davis. He previously worked as a research assistant at the Center for Energy and Environmental Studies at Princeton University.

Dave grew up in the Chicago area and is still a huge Bears fan — providing some balance to the purple and green jerseys worn around the office in the fall. During graduate school, he and his wife Nancy rode a tandem bike 4,500 miles from Princeton, NJ, to Davis, CA. During their weeklong stay in Minneapolis, they decided it would be a great place to raise a family.

As the outreach manager, Stacy oversees outreach and recruitment for several residential programs at CEE. She works closely with city, utility and community partners across Minnesota.

Stacy began working on residential programs at CEE in 2009. She started as an energy counselor with the Community Energy Services program, moved into coordinating outreach in 2012, and has managed CEE residential outreach since 2017. Prior to working at CEE, Stacy worked on community outreach for several progressive nonprofits.

Stacy received her BA in English and environmental studies from the University of Wisconsin - La Crosse, and holds certificates for residential energy auditing and permaculture Design.  

Memberships

• Certified Energy Auditor by the Dunwoody Institute
• Permaculture Design Certification from the Regenerative Design Institute in Bolinas, CA

As a member of CEE's One-Stop Efficiency Shop Commercial Refrigeration program, Tyson supports small to midsize businesses by evaluating existing refrigeration systems, diagnosing improvement opportunities, and providing recommendations for efficiency upgrades or replacements.

Prior to joining CEE in 2018, Tyson held the role of commercial sales manager in the battery and lighting industry throughout Wisconsin and the greater San Francisco Bay Area and also worked at an HVAC controls company based out of Las Vegas, Nevada. He attended Gateway Technical School in Kenosha, WI, with a focus on HVAC and business.

Jordan works at CEE as a loan officer. He was previously a loan officer at Greater Community Credit Union in Dawson, MN. 

Jordan graduated from Ridgewater College in Willmar, MN with an associate's degree in business before continuing his education and graduating with a BA in finance from St. Cloud State University.

As CEE's initiative marketing manager, Keller supports the organization's mission and values with a focus on emerging community-based programs and initiatives. She helps implement effective strategies, tracking program impacts, and upholding the company identity. 

Prior to joining CEE, Keller helped build the foundational marketing department for a startup medical technology company based in Minneapolis. With a BA in communication & journalism, along with a minor in political science from the University of St. Thomas, Keller has honed skills in communication, strategy, and project management.

As an energy counselor, Aaron is responsible for installation of energy efficiency improvement items such as smart thermostats, weather stripping, LED light bulbs, high efficiency shower heads and aerators, etc. Previously, he worked at Jimmy Johns as a delivery driver.

Aaron graduated with a degree in sustainable systems management with a focus in Building Science and Technology from U of M Twin Cities.

As systems administrator, Kyle ensures smooth and secure installation, operation, and maintenance of servers, services, and network infrastructure at CEE's offices. 

Prior to joining CEE, Cheryl worked in finance in a variety of industries, primarily with large for-profit companies. In recent years, Cheryl led the financial operations for a small nonprofit in the health and human services industry. Cheryl has a BS in finance from St. Cloud State University and an MBA in accounting from the University of St. Thomas.

AS the multifamily program manager, Grant is responsible for implementing CEE's multifamily programs, including overseeing day-to-day tasks of utility programs and strategizing on expanding CEE's reach within the multifamily sector.

Grant started at CEE as an energy auditor. Previously, he worked for a variety of governmental agencies as a naturalist, delivering environmental education to diverse audiences. He holds a BS in environmental geoscience from Northland College in Ashland, WI.

Certifications

• Building Performance Institute (BPI): Building Analyst

As a senior energy auditor, Sao works directly with homeowners to help them understand how their home uses energy by identifying and installing low- and no-cost opportunities and measures to save both energy and money.

As a senior energy auditor, Mike is an expert at explaining to homeowners the nuances of home energy conservation and how to best achieve the maximum energy savings and home comfort.

Mike has more than 25 years of experience conducting energy audits, weatherization inspections and HERS ratings.

As community energy program manager on CEE’s Communities team, Deirdre works with communities through Xcel Energy’s Partners in Energy and other programs that foster community-led strategic energy, resilience, and climate planning. Deirdre is also certified as an Envision Sustainability Professional (ENV SP) certified by the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure. That certification allows her to guide communities through infrastructure projects with a sustainability, resiliency, and equity lens, leading to the recognition of projects for those efforts and ensuring the project's success. Deirdre also participates on CEE’s staff council and volunteers for multiple water organizations in Minnesota.

Deirdre joined CEE in 2019. She came to CEE from a nonprofit where she did similar community and local government work for water sustainability and conservation. Along with her education in environmental and social sciences, she is trained in facilitation and received the 2019 Excellence Award for Volunteer Program Development from the Minnesota Association for Volunteer Leadership.

Karin most recently worked as a Regional Operations Specialist for Coldwell Banker Realty in Edina. She previously worked at ResourceWest, a charitable nonprofit in Hopkins. She spent three years working as an Assistant Language Teacher in Japan with the JET Program and has volunteered with the Minnesota Literacy Council. 

Marvel works at CEE as an energy counselor. She works with auditors and homeowners to help make homes more energy efficient by performing same-day efficiency upgrades. She most recently worked in social services administering at State of MN program called Housing Stabilization Services. Before that, Marvel worked for four years as a city letter carrier in South Minneapolis.

As a senior auditor for CEE’s residential programs, Elliott inspects homes to assess insulation levels, air tightness, and combustion appliances to identify ways that homeowners can make their homes safer and more energy efficient. Elliott also helps train the workforce development program trainees to develop technical and soft skills while working in the field.

Prior to CEE, Elliott worked at the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board with aquatic invasive species management. He also spent time working for the Conservation Corps of Minnesota & Iowa working as a crew leader doing natural resources work. 

Elliott holds a degree in Spanish from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, with an environmental studies minor. During his time at Eau Claire, Elliott was on the board of the Student Office of Sustainability and was a part of the waste audit report research team. 

Josh manages the Salesforce system at CEE's St. Paul office.

He previously worked on targeting and data systems for Clean Water Action and as an organizer for forest and wildlife protection with the Sierra Club.

Ana De La Torre leads planning, project management and strategy implementation for individual communities participating in Xcel Energy's Partners in Energy offering. She previously worked as a Sustainability Coordinator for the City of Saint Paul, where she was involved in a variety of projects, including energy benchmarking of buildings, creating the Saint Paul Climate Action Dashboard, and the Evie Carshare program.

Prior to her role at the City of Saint Paul, Ana worked and lived in various countries, including Australia, New Zealand, and Taiwan. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in environmental studies from Lake Forest College.