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This summer, Eco-Alpha teamed with Green Tech — a nonprofit dedicated to providing green energy career exposure to the next generation — to give the 2026 Energy Baron Program cohort a look inside SMUD, a community-owned and not-for-profit utility.
Building a skilled workforce takes deliberate investment and partners willing to open their doors to the next generation of skilled and trained talent. The Energy Baron Program is a 10-week immersive training program dedicated to upskilling youth and young adults for the next generation of the facilities operations workforce. Eco-Alpha and Green Tech coordinated a site visit for the 2026 Energy Baron Program cohort at the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD). SMUD's facilities team hosted the students for a behind-the-scenes tour, walking them system-by-system through the work of operating a high-performance facility.
A partnership built for exposure
This day was a partnership at work. Eco-Alpha, under CEO Dr. Melanie Okoro, brings the training: a commitment to preparing the next generation of STEM professionals for careers in facilities operations and maintenance through the Energy Baron Program. Green Tech, the nonprofit, led by President Simeon Gant is dedicated to exposing youth and young adults to careers in green energy — that is the mission and the momentum. SMUD brings the floor: a community-owned utility willing to host and sponsor the experience. Green energy exposure, hands-on STEM training, and an open door — together, that's something a classroom alone cannot offer.
Not a walkthrough
The cohort examined how the core systems of a high-performance facility, using green and sustainable practices are operated and maintained to include: HVAC, electrical and advanced lighting, fire alarm and life-safety, domestic water, and the building-automation and sensor networks that tie it all together.
The 2026 Energy Baron cohort left SMUD with a clear picture of what a facilities operations career actually looks like day to day — HVAC, electrical and advanced lighting, fire alarm, water treatment, and the building automation tying it all together.
- Facility exploration. A guided walk-through gave the cohort exposure to a working campus environment.
- On-site observation. Students saw the operational spaces that keep the campus running.
- Career realities. Staff spoke to the expectations and responsibilities of the field.
- Professional Q&A. An open exchange with the hosts on career pathways and industry advice.
By the Numbers
Sponsorship as pipeline investment
We're equally grateful for SMUD's sponsorship of this program. Support like this does more than fund a day; it invests in the people who will carry this work forward. With so much experience set to change hands in the coming years, the organizations that thrive a decade from now will be the ones welcoming young talent in today.
“The organizations that will be fully staffed in ten years are the ones building relationships with young talent today.”
— Dr. Melanie Harrison Okoro, CEO, Eco-Alpha
Our thanks to the SMUD team, Casey Coyes, Troy Hearne, James Jarred, Jr., and Jordan Grieger, who led the tour and shared their expertise with our students. Thank you to Green Tech and President Simeon Gant with a mission to expose young people to green-energy careers for making this cohort possible. Eco-Alpha remains committed to training the next generation of STEM professionals in facilities operations and maintenance, and we're proud to build that future alongside partners who treat workforce development as shared, long-term infrastructure.
