WELCOME
A Message From Rick Nelson, General Manager
For the past 88 years, the Nebraska Rural Electric Association has gathered annually to celebrate the success of public power in the State of Nebraska. This year we continue this tradition and embark on new discussions that will impact the daily operations of our rural electric systems. I invite you to join me and other general managers, directors, employees, and spouses at this annual networking event to learn from the keynote speakers as well as from our fellow attendees. Our agenda features expert industry advice and guidance for management as well as the board room. We will hear about traits, teamwork, and leadership aspects that are a necessity for management and a board of directors to succeed. Correlating this information back to your local board room will be important. The future of the electric industry is complex, but a necessary conversation that EPRI will lead us in, and an important technology that many of us are curious about is artificial intelligence. We must consider how we leverage the rewards while managing risk for our customers in this new arena. We all face obstacles, personal and professional; we will have the opportunity to hear about strategies that will help us be successful. Our Associate Members and National Premier Members will also join us to provide updates on both local and national issues. I hope you enjoy the 88th Annual Meeting of the Nebraska Rural Electric Association.
Officers & Staff
Pre-Conference Training
Room: Platinum 7
NRECA Board Leadership Certificate Course #943.1 – Conversation Skills Outside the Boardroom
Coffee and Rolls
Registration Desk Open
NREA Standing Committee Meetings
agendas available in the next section
Reception hosted by Federated Rural Electric Insurance Exchange
Room: Silver 1&7
Registration Desk Open
Buffet Breakfast
Room: Silver 1 & 7
(All registered annual meeting participants)
Women in Rural Electrification (WIRE) Annual Meeting, Breakfast, and Craft Activity
Room: Gold 11 & 12
First General Session
Room: Silver 4 & 10
Welcome
Rick Nelson, General Manager, NREA
Traits a Board Needs to Succeed
Adam Schwartz, Founder, The Cooperative Way
Future of the Electric Industry
Neva Espinoza, Vice President of Energy Supply and Low-Carbon Resources, Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
Networking Break
Omaha Public Power District Update
L. Javier Fernandez, President and Chief Executive Officer
Nebraska Public Power District Update
Tom Kent, President and Chief Executive Officer
Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association Update
Duane Highley, Chief Executive Officer
Directors Luncheon
Room: Silver 1 & 7
(No lunch speaker)
Second General Session
Room: Silver 4 & 10
Teamwork and Leadership in a Changing World
Karl Mecklenburg, All Pro National Football League Denver Broncos, Author, and Certified Speaking Professional
Award Presentations
NREA Youth Programs
Networking Break
Artificial Intelligence – Leveraging the Rewards While Managing the Risk
Nicholas J. Pascale, Deputy General Counsel, Office of General Counsel National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA)
Overcoming Obstacles: Strategies for Success
Major General (Retired) Byron S. Bagby, LDR Leadership
NREA Suppliers Group Annual Meeting
Room: Platinum 5
Social Hour hosted by NREA Suppliers Group
Room Gold 1 & 7
NREA Annual Banquet and Entertainment (Doors Open)
Room: Silver 1 & 7
NE-ACRE Annual Meeting, Breakfast, and Auction
Room: Silver 1 & 7
Third General Session – Association Business Session
Room: Silver 4 & 10
Presiding: Greg Strehle, NREA President
- Roll Call, Introductions, Affidavit of Mailing
- Approval of Agenda and Minutes from Previous Meeting
- Treasurer's Report
- Committee Reports
- 2025 Annual Budget
- Operational Resolutions
- NE-ACRE Report
- General Counsel Report
- Reports from National Premier Members
- Other Reports as Appropriate
Other Business
General Manager's Report
President's Report
Closing Remarks
Adjournment (approximately)
Advisory Committee
Room: Bronze 4
Agenda
Coffee and Rolls
Room: Silver 4 & 10
Registration Desk Opens
Convention Center
(Pick up name tags and meal tickets)
Job Training & Safety Committee
Room: Silver 4 & 10
Agenda
Legislative Committee
Room: Silver 4 & 10
Agenda
Public Information Committee
Room: Silver 4 & 10
Agenda
Lunch for Registered Participants
Room: Silver 1 & 7
Statewide Services Evaluation Committee
Room: Silver 4 & 10
Agenda
Policy & Resolutions Committee
Room: Silver 4 & 10
Agenda
NREA Group Retention Committee Meeting
Room: Bronze 4
Nebraska Rural Electric Cooperative
Room: Silver 4 & 10
Advisory Committee
Room: Bronze 4
Reception Hosted by Federated Rural Electric Insurance Exchange
Room: Silver 1 & 7
Keynote Speakers
Adam Schwartz
Founder, The Cooperative Way
Adam Schwartz is the founder and principal of The Cooperative Way, a consulting firm dedicated to assisting all types of social impact businesses succeed. The Cooperative Way is a strategic partner with Columinate, a shared services cooperative of over seventy consultants. He provides strategic guidance (for employees, boards, and members) for cooperative organizations of all types (Utility, Purchasing, Agriculture, Credit Unions, Housing, Worker, and hybrids) seeking to utilize principles and values as a primary force in serving their members and the community. He has served as an adjunct instructor at the University of Mary Washington- College of Business in Fredericksburg, Virginia teaching about the cooperative business model. Prior to founding The Cooperative Way, Adam served as vice president for public affairs and member services from 2005-2011 for the National Cooperative Business Association. From 2001-2005 Adam was Vice President of External Affairs for the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative. From 1992-2001, Adam was a senior legislative representative for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). He is a graduate of the State University of New York at Oneonta and was awarded the Alumni of Distinction honor in 2018. He is the father of two adult daughters.
Neva Espinoza
Senior Vice President, Energy Supply and Low-Carbon Resources and Chief Generation Officer, Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
In this role, she leads a global team conducting EPRI research and development related to energy supply – including generation, nuclear, and low-carbon fuels – as electricity use continues growing through the energy transition. This includes conventional and advanced nuclear, the existing fossil fleet, large-scale renewable generation assets, long duration energy storage, and the production and use of low-carbon energy carriers. Previous leadership roles included serving as EPRI’s Vice President of Energy Supply and Low-Carbon Resources and Director of R&D for the institute’s Generation Sector. She joined EPRI in January 2012 with more than 10 years of operational and engineering experience in the power industry, across a diverse set of assets and technologies. Prior to EPRI, Espinoza served in technical and leadership positions at NRG’s Arthur Kill Power Station, Exelon’s Oyster Creek Power Station and Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory. Espinoza received a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Rutgers University and Master of Business Administration degree from Wake Forest University. She is a graduate of the U.S. Navy’s Officer Nuclear Power Program and held a senior reactor operator license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Espinoza sits on the National Petroleum Council and the Georgia Institute of Technology Strategic Energy Institute Executive Advisory Board.
L. Javier Fernandez
President and Chief Executive Officer, Omaha Public Power District
Javier Fernandez has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of OPPD since 2021. He joined the utility in 2017 as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Fernandez came to OPPD from the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), U.S. Department of Energy, in Portland, Oregon. He had been with the federal power marketing organization since 2012, most recently serving as executive vice president and chief financial officer. He previously served as senior vice president of Fixed Income Capital Markets for D.A. Davidson & Company and vice president of Public France for Seattle Northwest Securities Corporation. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM) in Mexico City, a master’s degree in business administration from Yale University, and a Utility Management Certificate from the University of Idaho. He currently serves as Board Chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, Omaha Branch, vice-chair of the Large Public Power Council, Board Chair of Habitat for Humanity Omaha, and is a board member for Ameritas, Bellevue University, the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce, and the Aksarben Foundation.
Tom Kent
President and Chief Executive Officer, Nebraska Public Power District
Tom Kent was appointed NPPD’s President & Chief Executive Officer in May 2020. Mr. Kent graduated from the University of Nebraska with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in 1985 and received a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Nebraska in 2005. He has also completed the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO) reactor technology course for utility executives at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He joined the District in May 1990 as Environmental Qualification Coordinator at Cooper Nuclear Station. Mr. Kent also has held the positions of Retail District Manager, Retail Regional Manager, Retail Customer Care Manager, Chief Information Officer, Corporate Planning and Risk Manager, and Transmission and Distribution Manager. He also spent four years on active duty as a commissioned officer in the United States Navy. He was appointed a Vice President in May 2011, and Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in January 2020.
Duane Highley
Chief Executive Officer, Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association
Duane Highley serves as CEO for Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association. Tri-State has 45 members, including 42 utility member systems that serve across 200,000 square miles in Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, and Wyoming, providing power to over one million consumers. Duane joined Tri-State in 2019 and has 39 years of experience with cooperatives. Previously serving as President/CEO for Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corp. and Arkansas Electric Cooperatives, Inc., he led an organization that provided reliable, affordable, responsible power through 17 member systems to over one million consumers. Duane also serves as Co-Chair of the Electric Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC), coordinating security efforts between electric utility CEOs and cabinet-level officials of the U.S. Government.
Karl Mecklenburg
All Pro National Football League Denver Broncos, Author, and Certified Speaking Professional
Karl Mecklenburg rose from a college walk-on and twelfth round draft choice to an NFL career that included three Super Bowl and six Pro Bowl appearances. This former Bronco’s captain spent his entire twelve year career in Denver and makes Colorado his home now. Mecklenburg was arguably the most versatile player in the NFL playing all seven defensive front positions often in the course of a single game. Karl was selected as the AFC Linebacker of the Year, AFC player of the Year, and since retiring from the NFL has been enshrined in the Denver Broncos Ring of Fame and the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame. Mecklenburg has been a Pro Football Hall of Fame Semifinalist each of the last five years. Karl and his wife Kathi continue their charitable commitment to Colorado working with Food Bank of the Rockies alongside Empower Retirement and also as the Broncos representative for Taste of the NFL. His latest book, Heart of a Student Athlete; All Pro Advice for Competitors and Their Families, offers advice to young athletes and their loved ones about what it really takes to be successful in sports and life. Mecklenburg is the only NFL legend to have earned the Certified Speaking Professional designation from the National Speakers Association. As an author and speaker Mecklenburg’s stories of teamwork and leadership are humourous and inspiring. He approaches his speaking career with the same intelligence, passion, and intensity that punctuated his great football career.
Nicholas J. Pascale
Deputy General Counsel, Office of General Counsel, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association
Nick practices law in NRECA’s Office of General Counsel. His practice includes advising electric cooperatives on legal issues impacting their business and operations. He is a regular speaker at NRECA’s Legal Seminars and contributor to NRECA’s monthly legal newsletter—the Legal Reporting Service. He is a member of the Electric Cooperative Bar Association. In addition, Nick manages internal legal matters for NRECA and its affiliated entities. Before joining NRECA’s Office of General Counsel, Nick was a litigator in Louisiana and Virginia. Nick is Vice President of the Energy Bar Association. He received his J.D., MBA, B.C.L from Louisiana State University. Nick received his B.A. from Virginia Tech.
Major General (Retired) Byron S. Bagby
LDR Leadership
Bagby is a proven senior executive, bringing a unique depth and breadth of leadership experience
gained from a lifetime of leading and caring for others. He has been a senior instructor with LDR
Leadership for almost three years, inspiring numerous clients to be their best as he shares his wisdom
and lessons learned with a wide-ranging audience of executives, board members, supervisors/managers, and other leaders. He retired from the U.S. Army at the rank of Major General after serving as Commandant of Joint Forces Staff College; Chief Operating Officer of the Office of Military Cooperation in Cairo, Egypt, managing security cooperation programs valued at $1.3 billion annually; and Chief Operating Officer of U.S. Army, Europe, directing all the activities of over 1,000 people in 30 locations, in nine countries. His duties include the Pentagon on the Joint Staff and Department of the
Army Staff. Byron is managing partner of his own independent consulting firm providing services in
executive leadership development and coaching, strategy development and governance. He is a certified True Growth Leadership facilitator and a certified Authentic Leadership Development Coach through the Chambers Bay Institute and has coached more than 400 leaders to live a life of significance. He currently serves on the Advisory Board for Ryan Consulting Group (as Chair); on the Board of Directors of Management Support Technology, Inc.; and the Boards of Trustees of William Woods College and Columbia Southern University. From 2012-17, he served on the Board of Trustees of Westminster College (MO). General Bagby has earned many decorations and honors, including: two Army Distinguished Service Medals; the Ranger Tab; the Master Parachutist Badge; the Westminster College Lifetime Alumni Achievement Award; and has been inducted into the Fulton Public Schools Hall of Fame. He is a life member of The Veterans of Foreign Wars and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He holds membership in the National Association of Corporate Directors and the Association of governing Boards of Universities and Colleges. He earned his B.A. in Economics from Westminster College and his M.Ed. in Adult Education from UNC Chapel Hill. Byron and his wife, Monique Hale Bagby live in Alexandria, VA. He has two adult children.
Nebraska Action Committee for Rural Electrification (NE-ACRE)
NREA Suppliers Group
The Nebraska Rural Electric Association Suppliers Group are those suppliers and vendors that host social functions for the following NREA meetings: Annual Meeting, JT&S Conference, Manager’s Meeting, Engineering Seminar, Technology Conference and the Accountants Club. Thank you for your support throughout the year!
Suppliers Group Members - 2024
- ALTEC INDUSTRIES, INC.
- AMERICAN POWER & COMMUNICATIONS
- BELL LUMBER & POLE COMPANY
- BORDER STATES ELECTRIC
- CAHOON SALES, INC.
- COBANK
- COOPERATIVE RESPONSE CENTER, INC.
- CROSS CANYON ENGINEERING
- DGR ENGINEERING
- DUTTON-LAINSON COMPANY
- ENERGYSOLUTIONS, INC.
- EVANS LIPKA AND ASSOCIATES
- EZ IT SOLUTIONS LLC
- FAST FORWARD
- FEDERATED RURAL ELECTRIC INSURANCE EXCHANGE
- GLOBAL UTILITY SERVICES, INC.
- GRAYBAR ELECTRIC COMPANY, INC.
- GUGGENMOS & ASSOCIATES
- HAMILTON
- HUBBELL POWER SYSTEMS
- HUGHES BROTHERS, INC.
- HYDRAULIC EQUIPMENT SERVICE, INC.
- IES COMMERCIAL, INC.
- IRBY UTILITIES
- JEO CONSULTING GROUP, INC.
- JJ KANE AUCTIONS
- KW–ASSOCIATES
- LAMINATED WOOD SYSTEMS, INC.
- LYNN ELLIOTT CO., KC
- MERIDIAN COOPERATIVE
- MIDWEST SPRAY TEAM & SALES, INC.
- MILE HIGH DRONES
- MOEHN ELECTRICAL SALES COMPANY
- NATIONAL INFORMATION SOLUTIONS COOP
- NATIONAL RURAL UTILITIES COOPERATIVE FINANCE CORP.
- NEBRASKA CLASS
- NEBRASKA ENERGY FEDERAL CREDIT UNION
- NEBRASKA FEDERAL INVESTMENT TRUST
- NEBRASKA PUBLIC AGENCY INVESTMENT TRUST
- NORTHLAND SECURITIES, INC.
- NRTC
- THE OKONITE COMPANY
- OSMOSE UTILITIES SERVICES, INC.
- PIPER SANDLER & CO.
- POWER DELIVERY SERVICES, INC. / PDS
- PURPLE WAVE AUCTION
- RESCO
- RMA ENGINEERING, LLC
- RVW, INC.
- SKARSHAUG TESTING LABORATORY, INC.
- SKYHELM
- SUNBELT-SOLOMON SOLUTIONS
- T & R ELECTRIC SUPPLY CO., INC.
- TEREX UTILITIES
- UNION BANK AND TRUST NFIT
- WESCO
Additional Information
Important information regarding the conference facility, logistics, activities, and awards is listed below. Check back for up-to-date information.
National Premier Members
