Electrifying! Energizing! Ecstatic! PUD Education Team Teaches the Next Generation

Pictured, the PUD Team 2024-2025 school year

Who better to energize life in our community than PUD teachers?

Dedicated to educating and inspiring students on the electrifying subject of power, our team of PUD educators strives to spark curiosity, teach about utilities and empower the next generation.

The PUD Education team accomplishes this through developing and delivering curriculum on electrical safety, how circuits work, renewable energy and more through in-person and virtual presentations to meet students across our service territory.

The team also leads students on field trips of PUD hydroelectric facilities, shares information about the PUD at STEM events to further engage and connect with students and hosts educational hands-on demonstrations at the PUD’s annual Energy Block Party and other community events.  During these events, students engage with employees from across the PUD, learning firsthand about the many careers available within the utility industry.

The PUD Education team is made up of Heather Herbst and Kelly Singleterry, both Public Education Program Coordinators. Heather and Kelly design energy-related curriculum lessons based on Washington State Education Standards. They work closely with private and public schools as well as homeschool families to provide educational opportunities and resources for teachers.

“It’s a privilege to work with PUD experts from different departments and then teach students about the amazing work we do every day,” said Heather. “We learn new things daily!”

Often students who learn about the PUD in their elementary years return to work for the utility. Colton Lindstrand, who works as an AMI Deployment Technician in the PUD’s Connect Up program, remembers learning about the PUD as a youngster.

“I’d say that was my origin point of interest in the PUD,” said Colton. “I’ve heard a lot of great things about how awesome the company is, how well they support their employees and how good the general experience is. I’ve always had positive experiences with the PUD. It felt like a respectful company to work for where I’d be doing real things for people that made a difference.”

Over this past year the PUD has:

Reached 35,310 students and families through PUD educational events

Taught 685 elementary and 178 middle school lessons

Completed 21,973 total student hours of instruction in local schools

Toured 1,553 students of our Woods Creek Sustainability Center

Reached more than 11,780 students through STEM events and community activities

Hear from local teachers:

• “Thank you so much for providing this outstanding program for our students. Having an outside expert come in is an excellent way to engage students and teach them critical science standards. It makes science fun and these experiences connect students and teachers to our community and the world around us.”
• “Students who got to experience it for the first time listed the PUD lessons as one of their top 3 favorite memories from our school year so far on a pre- spring break reflection activity”
• “Thank you for providing this excellent resource for our students. We look forward to seeing our presenters every year!!”