At the annual meeting of the membership of the Utilities Technology Council (UTC), the Board of Directors approved new officers for the 2017-2018 board-year. The meeting was held in conjunction with UTC Telecom & Technology conference in Charlotte.

Outgoing Chairman, Matt Schnell from Nebraska Public Power District stated, "To be successful in any organization takes a lot of hard work and dedication from a team of people. We accomplished a lot this past year and have set a path forward to continue to provide outstanding member value in the years ahead. The member-led committees and the Executive Board have done outstanding work building membership participation, establishing new technology projects, and providing new learning experiences for UTC members." Schnell followed with, "A huge 'thank you' to the exceptional leadership and staff of UTC who work tirelessly to provide for the needs of all UTC members with care, patience, thoughtfulness and professionalism."

The gavel has been passed to Kathy Nelson of Great River Energy, who will be the first Chairwoman of the Board of UTC. Kathy Nelson is a Principal Telecommunications Engineer at Great River Energy, a generation and transmission cooperative located in Minnesota which serves 28-member distribution cooperatives in mostly rural areas. She has worked at GRE since 1993 after graduating with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering from North Dakota State University. Kathy is a licensed professional engineer in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and North Dakota, and primarily works in wireless systems design, focusing on SCADA communications and land mobile radio communications. Kathy has served on the UTC Board of Directors for eight years as Chair of Rural Issues Committee, Chair of Spectrum Committee, Chair of Public Policy Division for four years, Secretary/Treasurer, Vice Chair and now will serve as Chairwoman.

"It means a lot to me to be entrusted to lead this great organization in the upcoming year. UTC is the only trade association that focuses on telecommunications and technology issues for all utilities and it serves a unique and vital role for utilities," said Nelson. "It will be an honor to build upon the work from the chairmen who came before me and exciting to see what we will accomplish together this year."

Additionally, the Board unanimously elected Roger Bryant from Southern Company as the Vice Chairman and Greg Angst from CenterPoint Energy as the new Secretary/Treasurer. Matt Schnell will continue to serve UTC as Immediate-Past Chairman of the Board.

About UTC

The Utilities Technology Council (UTC) is a global trade association dedicated to serving critical infrastructure providers. Through advocacy, education and collaboration, UTC creates a favorable business, regulatory and technology environment for our members who own or operate Information and Communication Technology (ICT) systems in support of their core business. www.UTC.org